Harry Potter and the Dark Escape
by watt108
Summary: Harry is depressed about coming home for the summer. He also misses his two best friends, Ron and Hermione. But more than anything, he is missing his godfather and dealing with the trauma of 5th years events.
1. Back to Privet Drive

Disclaimer: I own absolutely nothing in this story! It all is the property of J.K. Rowling! It would be quite nice to own that property, but all of this comes from the knowledge in her books!  
  
Spoilers: SS/PS, CoS, PoA, GoF, OotP  
  
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Chapter 1 "Back to Privet Drive"  
  
It was very quiet on the way home from King's Cross. Uncle Vernon had both hands on the wheel gripping tightly looking straight ahead in terror from what Moody had warned Harry at the train station. Although the look on his Uncle's face would've normally made Harry grin, he didn't feel smiling at all, his look was plain and expressionless. He kept thinking of Sirius and how he would insist on bringing Harry back to Grimmauld Place with him, instead of going to his horrible aunt and uncles. But he stopped immediately after from feeling his eyes becoming watery. He sat there gazing out of the car window although he wasn't really watching anything, he was just trying to hide his tears from his cousin. Dudley sat as far away from Harry as possible on the ride home, but tried to hide his whimpering by insulting Harry instead. When Dudley noticed no reaction he became annoyed and went back to whimpering all the way home.  
  
As soon as the Dursley's pulled in the driveway Harry grabbed his things and headed for his room. Neither Vernon nor Petunia cared about this, because the more that Harry wasn't around, the happier they would be. Harry carelessly dropped his things on the floor and fell onto his bed. He laid there for a while just looking at the ceiling. He then started unpacking all of his clothes and books and things, that is until he came across a small little mirror, the one from Sirius. It had been shattered when he had thrown it into his trunk at Hogwarts, but he had repaired it before leaving. He looked into it, knowing that he wouldn't be able to communicate with Sirius, but every time he looked into it, he had the sudden urge to call his name and there he would be. Harry gazed into, and said his godfathers name. And as always, his breath fogged it up and once it cleared all he could see was his own reflection. He held it as though it was really delicate and costly glass, and set it on his nightstand along with the page opened to his parents wedding picture, which had a young and handsome Sirius waving happily at him.  
  
That night he didn't go down for dinner and fell asleep staring at his godfathers picture. Then Harry was suddenly awakened drenched in sweat from head to toe. He had the dream again, which was now becoming a daily thing because he was having it almost every night since he was at the Ministry. All he saw was Sirius' fearful expression and watching him fall behind the veil. And it would repeatedly play that image in his head, and Lupin saying, "There's nothing you can do Harry....It's too late Harry." He seemed to have been yelling in his sleep too, because he then heard his Uncle complain.  
  
"Shut up in there! You're going to wake up poor Dudley! He's got an early interview for a new school tomorrow!"  
  
Harry rolled his eyes. He could no longer sleep, so he decided to let Hedwig out of her cage. She sat there sympathetically nibbling his fingers, as if she knew that Harry was somehow upset.  
  
"Oh Hedwig, I'm glad that at least you know how I feel. All I want is to see Sirius again. To hear him speak. I just want my godfather back."  
  
Harry let his owl out so she could fly around the town of Little Whinging. He laid back on his bed and tried to put the thought of Sirius to the back of his mind. Then he closed his eyes and drifted off into an uneasy sleep. He was awoken again in only an hour, covered in more sweat. This happened every few hours for he had the dream over and over, with Harry getting very little sleep.  
  
The next few weeks were no different. He only came down when he was famished and only at night, so he could bring lots of food to his room so he wouldn't have to leave it and be around any of the Dursleys. Dudley started to get a little suspicious after noticing that his favorite snack was gone, when he forbid anyone but him to eat them.  
  
Two weeks had passed and Harry was sitting at his desk eating some cold leftover lasagna, which Aunt Petunia had made the night before, which was passed in through his cat flap on his door. He was so hungry he didn't care at how horrible it tasted cold, because he was so starved he would've even enjoyed a bogie flavored Every Flavor Bean. The Dursley's wondered how he lasted two weeks without food, but they didn't think too much of it, enjoying the fact that he was away from them. He passed the hours reading old letters from his friends and some books like Which Owl and Flying with the Cannons, which he had gotten at Christmas his second year from Ron. He also had homework to work on over the summer, which he had got a lot of done, being in his room for the past fourteen days.  
  
Harry drifted peacefully off to sleep that night, something he hadn't been able to do all summer, from reading a book about Quidditch. It was a great dream, Harry was playing Quidditch and he had the wind breezing in his face and he felt relaxed, he felt free of all his problems as if he left them all on the ground when he kicked off. He was zooming past other players towards the top of the playing area searching for the snitch. Within seconds he had seen it, and dashed towards the gold blur. He anxiously drew out his arm...getting even closer...closer...he could feel the little wings of the ball...but just as he was about to grip his fingers tightly around it, and he would have made an amazing catch if his dream hadn't ended so quickly after being jolted awake by a pair hands, which were now tightly gripped on his shoulders jolting him awake.  
  
------------------------------- Reviews are welcome and appreciated! -Watt lightbulb 


	2. The Great Escape

Chapter 2 "The Great Escape"  
  
"What the—"  
  
But Harry was soon stopped in mid-sentence by a hand that had closed around his mouth. After that he was clearly awake and his eyesight was no longer blurry from the sudden appearance of the bright lamp on his nightstand. He looked up and understood why he was just quieted. Moody was standing over him with Lupin in the background with a grin on his face at the sight of Harry.  
  
"Be quiet already! It's just us!" whispered Moody.  
  
Lowering his voice so soft that you could only hear it if you were inches away from Harry's face, he said, "Why are you both here? And why did you come at 1 in the morning?" glancing at his alarm clock. "My Aunt and Uncle could've caught you! They would've probably been horrified...but still..."  
  
Lupin joined the conversation.  
  
"We came to get you of course! Don't you remember what we mentioned to you at the station? 'If we didn't hear from you three days in a row, we'd send something along.' Well, we thought you might've just been busy, but after waiting two weeks...and nothing, we were going to come check on you personally."  
  
Harry had then instantly remembered their little talk. He felt a little guilty that they were waiting for him to write, but he'd forgotten all about it with Sirius on his mind so often.  
  
"I'm sorry, guys, I've been a little--"Harry stopped and paused, not wanting them to pity him or know how he was feeling,"--a-a little...busy and forgot to write! Yeah--I was busy and forgot to write!"  
  
Lupin eyed him and started to question, Harry felt as if he could see right through his little act. But Lupin stopped and said nothing. Harry had the feeling he felt the same way as he did right now, considering Sirius was his best friend, who happened to be his last remaining school friend, Harry could understand why.  
  
Moody cut in again.  
  
"Come on Potter! We haven't got all night! Get your things and try not to make a sound! We don't want your aunt and uncle getting up in the middle of our escape."  
  
Lupin was now sitting at Harry's desk and had started to write a note. It was addressed to Mr. and Mrs. Dursley.  
  
He got his trunk and Hedwig, and then headed for the door. He was half-way down the hall when he decided to check if he'd gotten everything. Moody was yelling for him to hurry, because Uncle Vernon had made a loud grunting sound as if he was awake. He felt around for his mirror, but couldn't find it in his trunk. Panic struck his face.  
  
Lupin was in front of Harry helping him with his things.  
  
"What's wrong Harry? Forget something?"  
  
"Yes I did. I've got to go get it!"  
  
His uncle had made another grunting sound and could hear him get out of bed (probably to get a drink from his and Petunia's own bathroom).  
  
At the sound of this Lupin stopped Harry, "No Harry, you might wake your aunt and uncle. We can't take that risk! You'll just have to wait till next summer to see it again."  
  
"NO! I'm not waiting! I can't wait that long, it's important to me!"  
  
Harry dropped his trunk, and it almost hit the floor and slid down the steps, but Lupin hurried to stop it. Harry was running back from his room clutching his photo album and mirror. He was trying to hide what had been so important from Lupin, but he'd already seen. He'd noticed the familiar mirror that he'd used in school a few times and knew it was from Sirius.  
  
Lupin smiled a little and started to say something, but stopped immediately. Harry imagined he would have said, "I understand Harry, I wouldn't wait till summer to have those again," but Lupin didn't say another word, because Uncle Vernon seemed to be up and about.  
  
Moody and Harry were now waiting for Lupin outside, who was setting the note he'd written to Uncle Vernon and Aunt Petunia in the kitchen.  
  
They hopped on their brooms and flew into the starry night sky. Harry couldn't help but grin. Getting out of Number 4 Privet Drive was wonderful no matter what mood you were in.  
  
"So, where are we going, anyway? The Burrow? Hogwarts?" Harry excitedly asked.  
  
"No," replied Moody matter-of-factly, "we aren't going to either of those places."  
  
Harry put his head down, not grinning anymore. He knew where they were going without even having to ask, now. It was the last place on Earth the Harry wanted to be right now.  
  
As thought, Harry's guess was correct.  
  
"We are going back to Grimmauld Place. It's much safer there and that's where Dumbledore requested that you go, even if Dursley's place is safer." replied Moody.  
  
"Oh...I guess that's better..." sighed Harry.  
  
Moody was in front leading not able to see Harry's expression, and Lupin was flying beside Harry. Lupin could tell Harry wasn't too happy about this at once after Harry's grin was wiped from his face at the hearing of what Moody had just said.  
  
"It will only be for a little while. Plus, you can see Ron and Hermione again!" added Lupin.  
  
Harry hadn't even thought to write to them. He felt a little guilty, because they had wrote him quite a bit, he just didn't feel like writing, or even to talking to anyone for that matter. But he thought it might be better to tell them a little bit that was on his mind, it might make him feel better.  
  
No longer had Harry thought of this, he heard a voice up ahead, "Get ready to land, we're here!"  
  
They all landed and walked Harry, along with his things, up to the front door of the last place on Earth that Harry wanted to be. 


	3. Back to Grimmauld Place

Chapter 3 "Back to Grimmauld Place"  
  
Harry stepped inside, feeling a sudden emotion of sadness. Ron and Hermione had ran down the steps to greet him.  
  
"Hey Harry! Was your flight okay? You have to tell me everything about how you got to escape from your aunt and uncle!" said Ron all in one breath.  
  
Hermione ran over to him and wrapped her arms tightly around his neck to give him a hug. Hermione's act was soon followed by a very tight hug from Mrs. Weasley, who wouldn't let go of Harry.  
  
Harry couldn't understand it, everyone around him was beaming at the sight of him. "Why are they all smiling? We are all in the house of someone who has just died! Why are they all so happy? How can they be so happy here? " Harry asked himself in his thoughts.  
  
With a forced smile, he said, "I think I'll go on up to my room, if that's ok. The flight was very tiring for me. G'night."  
  
Everyone's smiled had faded as they silently watched Harry gloomily slumped off towards the room he'd once slept in last year. His friends he left downstairs were all hoping to have a little bit of a welcoming party for him. All of them couldn't understand why he wasn't more happier that he had left Privet Drive and was now with the people who cared about him. No one except for one of them, knew exactly how Harry felt.  
  
Harry stayed in his room for the remainder of the night, and when he was just about to drift off to sleep, he was suddenly awakened by a knock on the door.  
  
"Harry, can I come in?" said a quiet voice.  
  
But before Harry could reply the door opened and then closed again, and Lupin went over and sat on the bed across from Harry.  
  
"Harry--" but before Lupin could finish, Harry interrupted.  
  
"You don't have to say anything, I know what you're going to say already. You're going to say that it's okay to be sad and I'll just have to deal with being here," Harry sighed, still laying on his bed.  
  
"Oh really? Well, can you just hear me out?"  
  
"Alright..."  
  
"Harry, I know how you feel, really, I do. I know you hate being in this place, just as your godfather did when he was here. I hate being here too. But we are just going to have to deal with it for right now, no matter how painful it may be."  
  
Harry sat there silently, listening to what Lupin had to say. Everything so far, was what he predicted Lupin would say.  
  
Lupin continued, "it's been very hard lately for me too, but I've been trying very hard to hide it, but I might as well come clean with you. It kills me to be here, you don't know what it's like, watching as your best friends have died, leaving you behind. And there's nothing I can do to change that. And you know I smile and laugh, but they aren't real, I just do it so everyone thinks I'm okay and nothing's wrong. And I know that it has to be very hard for you, especially, no matter how hard you try to cover it up. You've lost the one man, who has been like your father for the last 3 years. And I know you loved him like a father, and I know he loved you like you were his own son. And no matter how much you deny it, you're really upset about what happened a few months ago."  
  
Harry sat there, trying to fight back tears, but it was a losing battle, and he was sick of hiding it. He had a burning feeling in his throat, and there were tears flowing freely down his face. He opened his mouth to say something, but he couldn't speak. After trying so hard to talk, he finally got out, "I—miss—Sirius."  
  
Lupin looked at Harry, Lupin eyes were watery and wet too. He didn't say a word. He got up and sat on Harry's bed, and gave Harry the biggest, most caring hug he had ever had. It was a fatherly hug. They both sat there, tears falling from their eyes, as they comforted each other silently.  
  
After what seemed like quite a long time, Lupin straighten himself up and said, "well, I think it's time you went to bed now. Goodnight, Harry."  
  
But just as Lupin put his hand on the doorknob to turn it, Harry quietly said, "Thanks, Remus."  
  
"Anytime, Harry."  
  
And just as the doorknob had clicked back shut, Harry was asleep again. He had a dreamless sleep, which was exactly what he needed. He woke up feeling better than he had all summer. Although he still felt horrible, it felt good to finally have someone know how he really felt. He got up, dressed and went down for some much needed breakfast.  
  
Just as Harry walked in the room he was greeted by Lupin who was reading the Daily Prophet.  
  
"Morning, Harry! Did you sleep well?"  
  
"Yeah I slept okay, thanks," Harry replied awkwardly, feeling a little embarrassed about Lupin seeing him cry. Although he did respect Lupin for acting as if last night hadn't happened.  
  
"Harry, would you like anything to eat, dear? Eggs, bacon, sausages?" said Molly as she was cooking for everyone else at the time too.  
  
"I'll have a little bit of everything! I'm starved!" said Harry, who was very hungry since he hadn't eaten any dinner last night.  
  
No sooner had Harry come down, Hermione and Ron had entered the kitchen.  
  
They ate their breakfast listening to Harry's story of how he got here, since Ron had been begging him to hear it. Ron sounded a little upset about it afterwards, since nothing bad or funny, for that matter, happened to the Dursleys'.  
  
"Well, Ron, I'm glad that no one was hurt and that Harry got here okay." said Hermione.  
  
"Oh, c'mon Hermione, didn't you want the least little thing to happen to that git cousin of Harry's?" said Ron.  
  
For the first time here, Harry smiled, but it was quickly wiped off his face, because just at that moment, a creature he the most utmost loathing for, walked into the room.  
  
"Good morning, Master," Kreature replied to Harry.  
  
Harry shot one of the meanest looks possible towards the house-elf. "Go away, Kreature!"  
  
Kreature willingly left the room muttering to himself as loud as the normal voice, as always. Hermione looked as if she was about to say something to Harry, but bit her tongue when she saw Ron glare at her.  
  
The rest of the morning Harry, Ron, and Hermione talked about their summer so far. Hermione had gone to Paris again, and looked really brown. Ron hadn't gone anywhere, (who seemed a little angry that he didn't) was more freckly and was even taller and more lankier. Harry kept wondering to himself if he should talk to his best friends about Sirius. He now had a glazed look from wondering what to say, and hadn't taken in a word Ron said.  
  
"What? Yeah..."  
  
"Are you okay, Harry?" said Ron, who sounded a little worried.  
  
"Yeah, Harry, is there something on your mind?" added Hermione.  
  
It seemed as if they had already known what he was thinking before. Sounding a little nervous, he said, "Er...I forgot what I was going to say."  
  
Hermione and Ron gave him a suspicious look, as if they knew he was lying. Feeling even more uncomfortable, he added, "I was just...thinking about...H- Hogwarts, that's all."  
  
He had the feeling that his best friends wanted to talk to him about it, and were trying to get him to open up every chance they got. But Harry wasn't about to give in yet. 


	4. Birthday Bliss

Chapter 4 "Birthday Bliss"  
  
The next week flew on by, mainly with Harry forcing laughter and fake smiles. He had been staying up late because he couldn't fall asleep at night, mainly from flashbacks of last month's visit to the Department of Mysteries, so he slept intermittently throughout the day. One morning Harry woke up to find Ron not in his bed, obviously careful not to wake him up, because he looked like he hadn't even changed out of his pajamas. He slowly got out of bed, dressed, and slumped off towards the kitchen for breakfast.  
  
He opened the door, head down, and when he didn't hear anyone greeting him or any light from the fireplace, he looked up...  
  
"SURPRISE! HAPPY BIRTHDAY HARRY!" they all yelled in unison. Ron, Hermione, the twins, Ginny, Bill, Mr. & Mrs. Weasley, Lupin, Mad-Eye, and Tonks. Harry was shocked and embarrassed for jumping at the sound of their excited voices. He was so happy that he was actually having a birthday that was remembered by other people. But his rush of happiness and joy was soon gone as quick as it came. He was celebrating his birthday, but the person he wanted to be there the most, wouldn't be making it. His head dropped, but covered it with a forced smile. After all of the thank-you's, he opened his presents. He had gotten a ton of his favorite sweets from Ron and Ginny, a Quidditch book from Hermione, another sweater and pies from Mr. & Mrs. Weasley, some of Fred and George's joke items (which would be very useful, as he had gotten 2 boxes of the Skiving Snackboxes), a book called Hectic Ways to Ruin Your Arch-Enemy's Life from Bill ("I thought you could use it in case of emergencies" winked Bill.). He also received some sort of dark arts detector from Mad-Eye, which actually turned out to be a mini-Foe Glass disguised as a pocketwatch, some more books on Quidditch, which included useful tips on Seeker diversions from Tonks, and from Lupin, he received two things. He opened the first, and larger one, which were Defense Against the Dark Arts books and the other one, was a card that said:  
  
Harry,  
  
Congratulations on becoming sixteen! I have something else for you, but it's a little more personal that I'd rather give to you alone!  
  
Happy Birthday!  
  
Remus  
  
Then they did something that no matter what made him feel horrible, a huge grin and wave of happiness washed over him. Harry had never heard this song sung to he, Harry, before. They sang him his first "Happy Birthday". He looked around and saw everyone smiling at him. It finally ended when the twins and finished their very slow, but happy version of it. He looked in admiration at his cake, along with all sixteen of the magical candles, which were very colorful. The flames were different colors of the rainbow and blew sparks everywhere every few minutes. He could barely blow them out over his huge smile.  
  
Everyone ate the delicious cake made by Mrs. Weasley. It was a vanilla and raspberry cake. In the middle was raspberry cream. It was decorated in red with yellow icing letters. Harry appreciated it so much, that he regretted ruining the beautiful dessert. It was a huge cake, but by the time everyone was through with it, there was nothing but crumbs leftover.  
  
After a very long party, Mrs. Weasley chivvied them all out of kitchen around midnight. "Come on children! It's time for a good night's rest, we've had our fun, but now it's time for bed!" her patience running low.  
  
Everyone reluctantly left the room, Harry along with everyone else, but was held back by Lupin's pale looking hand. Harry had forgotten there was something left for Lupin to give him.  
  
"Oh, sorry Prof--Remus! I forgot there was something else you wanted to give me." said Harry a little more eagerly than he had meant.  
  
"Here's your other present. I knew you'd appreciate it, but I didn't want to give it to you with the others around." He handed Harry his wrapped present. Harry unwrapped a box, which was covered in brown paper. He opened the box, and his heart started to beat very fast at the sight of the present. He was choked from holding back his emotions. He was staring down at a picture of Lupin, his dad, and Sirius, who looked like they were probably in their 7th year. They were all gazing up at Harry waving, with huge smiles on their faces. Lupin looked much younger with not one gray hair on his head, his dad with his same ruffled black hair, and Sirius with his handsome face that had not yet seen the days of Azkaban. Harry had no words, for he couldn't speak. He just stared at the picture with deep appreciation, but then realizing that Lupin was still there, he quickly forced out, "Thanks Remus....it's...it's perfect! Where did you find it?"  
  
"I knew you would like it," he said with a kind smile. "I found it in a box of old pictures, and when I came across it, I just knew you would want it. I found more, but they all had Peter in them. And I didn't think you'd appreciate it as much with that...that...man in the photo. Well, seeing as it is almost one in the morning, I think it's best you go get some rest now."  
  
Harry slowly walked up the stairs, noticing that Mrs. Black was no where to be seen. He guessed they somehow must have gotten her down. He quietly opened the door to his bedroom to hear Ron's loud, raspy snores from his bed. Harry quietly changed into his pajamas and carefully set his new picture on his night stand. But even an hour after heading upstairs, Harry was wide awake. He lay in his bed, laying on his side, watching Remus, James, and Sirius, beaming at him and waving frantically from their frame. 


	5. Jinxes and Jailbreaks

Chapter 5  
  
The days passed quickly in Grimmauld Place, but as much as he hated this humungous reminder of the recent year, he couldn't help but have some fun.  
  
A week after his birthday, Harry, the Weasleys', and Hermione had a great time just clowning around. They used most of their time looking up spells and hexes in the two brand new books he'd received from Bill and Remus, having chess matches against each other, and flying in the backyard. But today, it was raining, so they spent the day inside, away from the sticky humidity that early August brought along with it.  
  
"I'm so bored, Harry, what do you say we all look at Chapter 8 in that book Bill gave you? I'm really want to look at that chapter!" pleaded Ginny.  
  
"Alright, I can't wait to use the Acne curse on Malfoy on page 43. I'd love to see that ugly git face of his all red and splotchy!" said Harry.  
  
They all laughed at the imagined sight of Malfoy and his cronies all red and splotchy, and spent the afternoon giving each other more pimples than ten Eloise Midgens' combined.  
  
"Pimplytonia!" cried George, giving Ron a faceful of pimples that mixed in with his huge amount of freckles.  
  
Soon, it was time for dinner and Mrs. Weasley was beckoning them to the kitchen. The smell of delicious steak and potatoes wafted throughout the kitchen and hall. As they entered, they were greeted by the faces of Mr. Weasley, Lupin, and Charlie.  
  
"Hello, children!" greeted Mr. Weasley.  
  
"What in the world has happened to your faces?" asked Lupin, through an amused smile.  
  
"Ginny, dear, what in the world has happened to your face?" cried Mrs. Weasley, in an I-hope-those-aren't-permanent voice.  
  
"Mum, honestly, they're nothing! These are just some of the leftovers, they'll be gone soon!" said Ginny.  
  
"So, I'm assuming you've been practicing the acne spell in that new book of yours, Harry?" grinned Bill.  
  
"Yes, yes we were! We were practicing for Mal—"He was halfway getting the rest of the words 'Malfoy' out, but stopped in mid-sentence to save Mrs. Weasley the time of disapproving. "Oh, just something to do on this boring day," lied Harry.  
  
Bill, along with everyone else had realized who they were planning on hexing, except for thankfully, Mrs. Weasley, and just gave them all a smile, and Bill murmured a "good luck with that!"  
  
The food was completely gone in less than a half of an hour. The steak was tender and cooked just right and the potatoes were buttery and spiced with herbs. After everyone had complemented on dinner, Mrs. Weasley began to set their dessert on the table. It was a large Shepard's pie and Yorkshire pudding. After everyone took their share, Harry decided to ask the question which was coming somewhat of a custom at dinner.  
  
"So, any more news on the Death Eaters? Or Voldemort for that matter?" asked Harry, hoping that this time, he would be finally be answered.  
  
He was used to the stares he got every time he dared ask this question. But everyone else was more than willing to know, so they just sat quietly and listened hard. But, as usual, Mrs. Weasley was listening as well while over at the sink cleaning up, perhaps even making an effort to overhear them.  
  
"Time to clear out!" shouted Mrs. Weasley, giving no one even the slightest chance of answering Harry. Then, with a stern glare, she said, "Children, why don't you all go back into the sitting room and have a game of chess?"  
  
"Mum, why can't you just let them answer us! I mean, we're even of age, but you still will absolutely refuse to have us join the Order. The least you could do is let us be somewhat clued-in!" yelled George, a tiny bit of his pudding splashing on the table after slamming down his eating utensils.  
  
Just as Mrs. Weasley was about to retort back, Mr. Weasley help up a polite hand, trying to calm and silence her at the same time. "Molly, I think it's time we informed them, even if we leave out a fair amount of information. They have to at least have some clue on what we're doing."  
  
"Fine," snapped Mrs. Weasley, who slammed herself down into an empty chair.  
  
Everyone was surprised at how quickly she gave in, but quickly, had wholly given all attention to Mr. Weasley now.  
  
"Okay, first off, you may be getting information, but that doesn't mean you're getting all of it, alright? You will just be getting, the tip of the iceberg." He thought for a moment, perhaps thinking about what he should leave out, and then gave a rather large sigh.  
  
"Well, the Death Eaters are still making their Muggle-born attacks, it's more of a festivity for them, really. But we've been getting information from an inside source that's told us that You-Know-Who has gotten almost complete cooperation with the dementors. The only reason not all cooperation, is because some are doubtful they'll be getting to kiss more and drain happiness. Since the dementors have almost completely crossed over to his side, there isn't much help in Azkaban. And they have all abandoned their stations at the prison. So it's becoming harder for us to keep a close watch on the prisoners."  
  
Mr. Weasley stopped, and looked over to Lupin, feeling it was his turn to talk.  
  
"So, we have a feeling that the prisoners are bound to escape soon if we don't do something to stop it, and soon."  
  
"So...there's going to be an outbreak at Azkaban?" said Harry, who broke the thoughtful silence. "Do you think that Voldemort will come himself, or will it be just the dementors and Death Eaters? Do you think the dementors will kiss anyone who doesn't want to be a Death Eater or will the others just kill them?"  
  
"Okay, all of you, that's enough! They don't need those thoughts put into their heads just about now! Time for bed children, now," and without a second look Mrs. Weasley ushered them out of the kitchen. Despite their objections, they were all soon at the foot of the stairs, where they were all slightly pushed to move to their rooms. "And no talking either."  
  
As Ginny and Hermione parted for their room on the level they were on, the boys headed up the next flight of stairs, towards their rooms.  
  
"So, we'll be in in a minute. We just have to make it look like we are asleep," said George with a wink.  
  
"Whatever," said Ron, turning the knob to their room.  
  
They went inside a put on their pajamas and crawled into bed, with no intention on falling asleep, neither of them were tired at the moment. And no more than a few seconds later, the twins appeared with a small pop and each sat down at the foot of their beds.  
  
"So, you two, when do you think there's going to be a jailbreak? I personally think it will be on Halloween, you know, as a celebration." said George.  
  
"George, there's as much chance of them doing it on Halloween as it is for you two to join the Order, honestly, with everyone being extra alert on Halloween, do you really think they'd do it on a holiday?"  
  
"You never know little brother, what those Death Eaters have got up their sleeves, well, other than the Dark Mark, of course. But, that lot can be quite the unpredictable, although they shouldn't be, with Snape being the Order's spy and all," said Fred, who sounded a little more than suspicious.  
  
"Do you think that Snape isn't on our side?" asked Ron.  
  
"We don't know what to think of him anymore, do we George?" said Fred.  
  
"Yeah, that greasy git of a man is always a little more than foul, especially toward Lupin anymore these days," added George.  
  
"But why? I mean Remus has never done anything to him, why be rude to him?" asked Harry, thinking back to last year's visit in Snape's pensieve.  
  
"Who knows, maybe because, well...it may be because Sirius isn't here anymore, so there's no one left to daunt," said Fred, who sounded more than a little anxious about the answer.  
  
"Yeah...probably, that slime-ball is always in need of someone to terrorize. But maybe Lupin won't have to deal with it as much after we get back to school, I mean, we all know he's bound to make my Potions experience a living-nightmare, that is, if I make it into NEWT Potions," said Harry, who now had the thought of OWL results in his mind, just another worry to add to his list of uncertainties.  
  
Just as Ron was about to reply, they heard footsteps down the hall and a voice calling out to them.  
  
"Ron, Harry, what did I say? No more talking! Is someone else in there, because I could've sworn someone else's voice in there..." she said, with a note of annoyance in her tone.  
  
The twins needed no more hint than that, that before opening the door to check on Ron and Harry, she'd be checking on them any minute afterwards. So with a nod, and quick "Goodnights", they were gone with a small crack.  
  
And with nothing left but some thoughts drifting in their heads about when there would finally be a jailbreak, and the first of them at Azkaban. Within minutes, Harry could hear the loud rasping noise of Ron's snores.  
  
"Man, that kid has some nose problem..." whispered Harry, before laying his head down on his feathery soft pillow. And within seconds he too, was sound asleep. 


	6. Headline News

Thank you to jess moony and shniz for reviewing my story! They are truly appreciated!  
  
And to shniz, I've been starting to make my chapters longer, starting with this one! I also think that my next chapter may possibly take longer, because for the next two weeks, I have lifeguard training! But I'll still try my best to update soon!  
  
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Chapter 6 "Headline News"  
  
The next morning, Harry was awakened by the delicious smell of sizzling bacon and sausage being cooked in the kitchen. Ron was already awake, because his bed was made and tidy. So he quickly dressed and headed down to the kitchen. He was welcomed by the Weasleys', Lupin, and Tonks.  
  
"Good morning, Harry!" greeted Tonks, who today had shoulder-length curls, which were blond with electric blue highlights the color of Moody's eye.  
  
"Morning!" said Harry, who seemed to be in a very cheerful mood.  
  
"Harry, dear, would you like something to eat? Sausage, bacon, toast, eggs?" asked Mrs. Weasley, who seemed to be pretending that last night never happened.  
  
"Sure, I'll have a little bit of everything, thanks."  
  
Harry sat down at the kitchen table, between Hermione and Ron. Across from him was Mr. Weasley and Remus, who both, as usual, were reading two editions of the Daily Prophet and drinking some freshly, brewed coffee. Lupin was looking peaky, but delighted all the same. Harry stopped to wonder why, but then realized that later this week was the full moon.  
  
Since everyone was already downing his or her breakfasts', Harry waited by reading the headline in the Daily Prophet which was facing towards him as Lupin read the inside. He was so startled at what he saw, that since he was in mid-drink, he spit out his pumpkin juice right on his empty plate and his cheerful feeling was gone.  
  
"Alright, there, Harry?" asked Ron, patting his back because Harry was still choking on the juice.  
  
"Yeah...yeah...fine, thanks," spluttered Harry, who seemed to be anxious on reading the headline which read:  
  
AZKABAN ESCAPE: LUCIUS MALFOY ESCAPES THE DEPTHS OF THE AURORS  
  
Azkaban Prison: Late last night, a known Death Eater, Lucius Malfoy succeeded to escape the Azkaban premises. While Aurors were on duty, they were rendered unconscious as no less than five unimprisoned Death Eaters broke into the prison. None of them have any idea of how they got to be unconscious, nor how the Death Eaters broke in without the knowledge of the guards. After they were awakened, they searched the premises for escaped prisoners and found that Lucius' cell, was empty, with a note on the wall bearing the words, 'I thank you, on my behalf, for allowing me to so easily escape from these walls with my fellow acquaintances'. There is no sign of the escapee any where, nor is there a sign of forced entry. The Aurors are still on the lookout for this man, among the many other Death Eaters, who have escaped the confinement in these walls. We caution all of you to keep a lookout for anything suspicious, and warn you not to act on this, but to inform the Aurors at the Ministry of Magic.  
  
After finishing the article, he was brought back down to earth by the sound of Ron's voice.  
  
"Harry! Harry! Finally, I get a response. What did I do to become ignored all of a sudden?" asked Ron, somewhat offended by Harry's actions.  
  
But as Harry glanced over to Hermione, he noticed that she too, was reading the article on Lucius Malfoy, and was finished soon after Harry.  
  
"Hermione...what? Have you decided to ignore me too now? What the bloody hell did I do to you both?" asked Ron, who was beginning to sound impatient.  
  
"No, Ron! You did nothing. But if you were paying attention, you would've realized the reason Harry wasn't responding, he was reading," whispered Hermione, who had an anxious tone from reading the newspaper.  
  
Since Ron still had a look of utter confusion upon his face, Harry jabbed his finger in the direction of the Daily Prophet.  
  
"That, is why I didn't hear you Ron," said Harry, a little annoyed by the fact Ron hadn't taken note of the newspaper.  
  
They both waited and watched Ron as he finished the article, his eyes widening with every sentence.  
  
"What—How...how did this happen?" cried Ron, who seemed to be completely in shock that Lucius Malfoy was no longer imprisoned.  
  
Everyone in the room had now taken note of the three's odd behavior, all staring at them as if they'd gone completely mad. But both Remus and Mr. Weasley got the picture, and explained before the three of them had a chance to speak.  
  
"I see you've read the headline news in the Daily Prophet," said Remus with a very grim smile. "In case you were all wondering, last night, Lucius Malfoy, helped by others, of course, managed to escape from Azkaban. Why he needed to be personally escaped by himself is beyond our knowledge."  
  
"Five Death Eaters broke in to accompany him on his departure from the prison," said Mr. Weasley darkly.  
  
"But how is that possible, with all the Aurors and guards, how could they have even gotten into the grounds without being caught?" asked Ginny, who still seemed to be unconvinced of last night's events.  
  
"We have no idea," Tonks chimed in. "There were Aurors everywhere, but somehow, the Death Eaters managed to knock them all unconscious before they could even make the slightest reaction, let alone sound the alarm of a possible escape. We assume that they were all hit with an extremely powerful Stupefy curse. Why they weren't even killed is beyond our knowledge as well."  
  
"So, that's just one more of Voldemort's loyal servants back in his inner circle, back to join his master once again," said Harry, with a gloomy smile. "Why would they just seize Malfoy, though, why not an all out jailbreak?" questioned Harry, as he absentmindedly picked at his breakfast, which was completely cold on his plate.  
  
"We aren't even sure of that. We have an Order meeting tonight, and plan to hear Dumbledore's outlook on all of this. I'm anxious to see what he has in mind," said Mr. Weasley, folding up his morning paper and taking a sip of his black coffee.  
  
After his statement, everyone sat in silent disbelief, that a man that had been dueling in the Department of Mysteries was free once again, to join the group that killed so many and tore families apart.  
  
After judging that this conversation was over, Mrs. Weasley took this as an opportunity to send the children away from the kitchen. "Alright kids, since it seems that you are all finished, would you please kindly go into the sitting room while I clear off the table?" she said, which sounded more as an order than really a simple question.  
  
Without an argument, Harry, the Weasley children, and Hermione hulled out of the kitchen and headed for the sitting room to discuss their latest knowledge learned at breakfast. They all took seats, while Ginny sat by the fire, becoming hypnotized by its flames licking the firewood .  
  
"I would just like to know how in the world they managed to get past so many Aurors and guards, I mean, that has to be near impossible to get through undetected!" asked Hermione, who seemed to believe that the Death Eaters' escape plan seemed to be unachievable.  
  
"Maybe they didn't need to escape! Maybe they were the guards and Aurors, maybe they were the Death Eaters and were on the inside, spying and getting information for You-Know-Who!" said Ron.  
  
"Ron, would you just say the name already. I mean, come on, Hermione does! Just say it, Voldemort," said Harry in severity. He was growing tired of hearing 'You-Know-Who' instead of the real name.  
  
Ron just flinched at the sound of his name and said nothing. The group sat in grim silence letting their ideas and thoughts of how the escape happened to rack their brains. Finally, they were startled by Ginny breaking the uneasy silence, speaking, but still staring at the red-hot flames.  
  
"What do you say we have a game of Exploding Snap, it's boring in here just sitting and thinking. Me, Fred, and George on a team while Harry, Ron, and Hermione on the other," she announced.  
  
So they all gathered round and played quite a painful game of Exploding Snap. At the end Hermione and Ron were sporting six singed fingers each, Harry with some sizzling hair on his brow and a hole in his sleeve, while Ginny, Fred, and George had holes burnt in their clothes. By the time their game had ended, it was time for lunch, which were turkey sandwiches, cut into halves. They spent their time eating discussing Quidditch moves and tricks, while Hermione, who was uninterested, stroked Crookshanks on the fire hearth rug.  
  
By the time dinnertime arrived, the Order meeting was about to begin. Mrs. Weasley hurried around the kitchen making some last-minute appetizers, and served the children.  
  
"Now, I expect all of you to help tidy up the kitchen after eating, and to just go on upstairs for the rest of the night, because none of you will be needed in the meeting," she said, as she eyed Fred and George, "that means you both as well!" And with no further look, she turned and shut the door behind her, her footsteps fading further away till they heard a final door click shut.  
  
"Wow, from the sound of her, it would seem as though she didn't want us to overhear the Order meeting!" said George, his voice dripping with sarcasm.  
  
"Too right you are George, it would seem as though she suspected us of eavesdropping in on the meeting! What a mad idea!" said Fred, joking, but still as much disdain in his voice as his twin brother's.  
  
They all laughed and thought back to the Weasleys' Wizarding Wheezes Extendable Ears. But while they were all laughing Fred and George whispered hurriedly.  
  
"Do you think we could risk it? Mum might be at the door, just in case we would pull something like this off," whispered George.  
  
"When are we ever going to have a greater chance than this? It's a once in a lifetime opportunity! We already know it will carry through, and the reception is clearer than ever!" cried George.  
  
They all looked at them questioningly. They knew the twins were up to something, planning their next scheme, but there was a trace of anxious excitement in their voices. Noticing the curious glances, the twins smiled at each other, nodded, and pulled something that looked similar to string from their pockets.  
  
"A whole new line! New and improved Extendable Ears!" said Fred proudly.  
  
"They've been tweaked a bit to get past mum's obstacles. We really must thank her, because she was the reason we did this to begin with!" added George, informing the rest of the group.  
  
"They're still in testing, no one knows about these little buggers yet but us, Lee, and now you four. We trust you'll keep quiet," said Fred.  
  
"Get on with it already! What did you do to them?" yelled Ron, growing as impatient as the rest of them.  
  
"They have a Disillusion Charm on them, so they can pass through under the door undetected and unnoticed! We've tested them already, on mum and dad, actually. They also have been charmed to get passed the Imperturbable charm. Quite the project. And they work quite well. Mum hasn't the slightest clue about these babies!" said George throwing them all a string.  
  
"That's brilliant!" cried Harry, astonished at what they had done to improve them. "It must have been difficult to get the strings to get passed Imperturbable," he added.  
  
"They bloody hell were! It took us nearly 4 months to come up with a way to do it on something as small and fragile as the Extendable Ears. And now is the time to finally have our work paid off!" said Fred, glowing.  
  
"I don't know about this. What if your mum is standing at the door in case something like this happens, or what if an Order member notices, or Dumbledore! We'll all be in enormous trouble," said Hermione, trying to hide the admiration from the twins charm work behind her harsh voice.  
  
"Oh, come on, Hermione, you know you want to, if not, just go upstairs and remain clueless of the events of the Order meeting! It's your loss, not oursm" said Ron, teasing her, annoyed all the same.  
  
She glared, and stubbornly took the string. The twins smiled at her, and beckoned for the rest to follow them. Leaving their untouched dinner, Ginny quietly closed the door behind them. Before anything else, George whipped a spoon at the door, checking to see if it was Imperturbed. He beamed at the sight of the spoon bouncing right off the unharmed door.  
  
"That means they can't hear us either! That's perfect!" whispered Fred.  
  
They all took the strings and stuck them underneath the miniature crack in the old wooden door and shoved the other end into their ears for superior hearing. They were right, thought Harry, these have wicked reception!  
  
The meeting had obviously just begun, because Dumbledore was speaking to the rest of them.  
  
"Welcome to tonight's Order Meeting. As you all know, Lucius Malfoy has escaped the watch of the Aurors to join Voldemort and his inner circle of Death Eaters once again. I have my own theories on the reason he was taken away without any other prisoners at his side. We also must discuss the fact that neither guard nor Auror was aware of this sudden turn of events or how in the world they entered unseen.  
  
"In my own opinion, I have a feeling that was just a practice drill. Voldemort, I'm sure, probably did need Malfoy back among them, as he was a main man in Muggle-torture, and a leader, and feared by other members below him. But I have reason to believe that Malfoy's escape was a test to see what difficulties they faced if a full-fledged jailbreak occurs. It was also a way of showing us how easy it is to fool a number of Aurors and guards, and that if he wanted, Voldemort could very well have a jailbreak, and a very dangerous event that could be. That is my reason to believe that no one was killed. They were left unharmed, but just this once, because next time, they will be killed if they cross the paths of a Death Eater on an assignment. It is now time for me to turn over this discussion over to Severus Snape, who will now give a description of the events and his theories on what will happen next."  
  
The group sat outside the door drinking in every word they heard. They sat in anticipation, glancing at each other nervously, waiting to hear about Snape's report on Voldemort's next plans of action. 


	7. OWL's

Chapter 7 OWL's  
  
Still kneeling on the ground, the door steadying themselves so they could be somewhat comfortable, they heard a table chair slide across the floor, and then being pushed back in again. Without even seeing Snape himself, Harry could still recognize him from that familiar swish that his cloak made with every step he took. The group, was now overly anxious, and Ginny was silently tapping her foot against the floor in anticipation.  
  
Inside the room, Snape stood at the front, replacing the region where Dumbledore had spoken. He had his customary sneer plastered on his face, and it seemed difficult for him to begin.  
  
"Thank you, Albus. First off, I would like to answer any doubts that you all may have had about me knowing of this incident. I hadn't the slightest insinuation about what was happening last night. It seems to me that he kept this exceptionally quiet, even for the Dark Lord, who will on average enlighten his entire inner circle of vital proceedings. But this time, he seemed to have left this only among his most trusted and loyal servants. My theory is, that sometime soon, the Dark Lord is going to come out into the open. And when he does, many people, wizards and muggles alike, are going to be killed. And in immense numbers, I might add. He has been hiding from the public, ever since his escape at the Ministry of Magic in June. Even I am uncertain of his living situation, for he always has us meet at an unidentified location. And Bellatrix has become his most important and trusted servant, after killing off Black in their duel in the Department of Mysteries, since he seemed to be the closest with Potter."  
  
Harry stared at the floor, anger rushing through his body like water. An ice cold ran deep in his veins, and longfully wished that his Cruacius Curse could have been a success. How could Sirius' own cousin betray him? And she was rewarded too, for killing Harry's last hope of a father-figure, Harry thought to himself, if only I could get hold of her now, she would pay for what she'd done...  
  
"But as for his next plan. He has given us a very small amount of informing, but enough to possibly help the Order. He is, for certain, planning a jailbreak, and afterwards, will have all living members back to him once again, that is, if they oblige to come back. After this, there will be brutal attacks. It will be just as it was those many years ago. There is predicted to be more tortures, killings, and controlling of people to help out the Dark Lord. He plans to use Imperius, and has mastered it to a new, and extreme extent. But, if he doesn't have all of his followers, his plan could be delayed, but only a short time. So, in order to stop him from causing as much, or even more devastation, the Aurors and guards must trust no one. I have a feeling that it could possibly be someone on the inside, one of our own, to be informing the Dark Lord of our whereabouts. Be aware of anything, even the slightest movement onto the grounds of Azkaban. And with the dementors now completely crossed over, Death Eaters could bargain with them, and also break into the castle themselves, feeding upon other prisoners in the cells. He has yet to announce the next gathering we will have, and that meeting will most likely be the plans intended for when a full-size outbreak takes place," finished Snape with a sigh. Throughout his entire speech, he let on no emotion whatsoever, and had a voice that scorned.  
  
And following that, Harry and the others heard the billowing of Snape's robes, and then the scraping of the chair, Snape sitting back in it again. There was then a chatter of hurried whispers and minor chair scrapes, as if the people in them were squirming ever so slightly.  
  
"Well, now that we've been so graciously informed by Severus, I will ask you all of how your stations and assigned tasks are going. Afterwards, the Order meeting will be finished, but, please, you all may stay for some tea if you like, made by Mrs. Weasley. Now, we'll start with you Kingsley..." said Dumbledore, who had pointed his hand in Kingsley's direction.  
  
No sooner had Dumbledore took note of tea, Mrs. Weasley smiled from her chair. Harry, who still had his head somewhat, facing the floor in cold fury, had his hand squeezed so tight around the string that his nails were starting to draw blood from the indents they made in his palm. Ginny was now sitting completely on the floor to get into a slight more comfortable position and Hermione was wide-eyed, and seemed to have dropped the string in spite of shock. The twins just sat there, still hoping to receive more information from the meeting that was now wrapping up, but were disappointed to find that no more valuable facts were found. Just as they were about to give up, they were startled by a voice edging closer and closer to the door at which they were all eavesdropping from.  
  
"If you'll excuse me, Albus, I must go and prepare the tea now, the children should be just about finished with dinner if they haven't already!" said Mrs. Weasley, still moving closer to the door.  
  
The Weasley children, along with Harry and Hermione looked at each other panicked. It was difficult for them to get up, having sat on the floor for what had to be an hour or so. They all shakily got up, and could hear Mrs. Weasley having some last minute conversation at the door, the knob was turned to open any second. At this, they didn't even look back to see if they'd been caught, and ran pell-mell to the kitchen door, Harry wrenching it open and Fred quickly, but quietly, slamming it shut. They got into their seats just as the door was opened. To make it look as though they were in the middle of their meals, they grabbed some food in their hands and hid it in their laps.  
  
"Well, hello, children!" said Mrs. Weasley, in a false cheery voice.  
  
"Hi, mum, meeting go well?" asked George, his tone as innocent as he could muster.  
  
"Yes, indeed! Quite a few topics discussed...nothing that you six would really care about," she said. "You know, I'm a bit shocked, I figured that you two," she glanced at Fred and George, "would try some trick to listen in on the meeting! But I guess I was wrong this time, huh?"  
  
"Mum, what gave you an awful idea like that?" asked George, trying to sound offended.  
  
"Oh, well, last year, you know, and...I guess you all have surprised me a bit!"  
  
"We're all full of surprises," said Fred. And everyone around him laughed, knowing the real meaning behind his joke. But Mrs. Weasley just smiled and started to clear the table. As she did, everyone hid their hands deep in their pockets shoving the food into them.  
  
"Sorry, dears, but I must clear you lot out. The meetings almost adjourned, and some are coming in for tea. I hope you all have finished," she said.  
  
"Oh, don't worry, mum, we've been done for a while now," said Ginny, as they left the room.  
  
They all went out to the hall, and headed for the stairs. Harry, who left the kitchen last, was just about to head up to his room, following the others, when he heard a voice behind him call his name.  
  
"Harry! Wait!" yelled the old, kind voice.  
  
"Oh! Sorry Professor Dumbledore! I thought you'd have left already, what with how busy you are and all..." said Harry, trying to cover up his anger that he hadn't gotten to talk with him in kind politeness.  
  
"Could I have a word, Harry?" asked Dumbledore, his usual twinkle not as bright tonight, but kind all the same.  
  
"Sure!"  
  
"How about in here, where it can be a little more private," he suggested, steering Harry into the back-to-normal sitting room.  
  
When they entered, the entire room was empty, and the fire had been re-lit already and was crackling as it licked the firewood.  
  
"I've been meaning to speak with you, but, as you know, I've really been quite busy," said Dumbledore, sounding a little less than enthused.  
  
They each took a seat by the newly lit stone fireplace.  
  
"First off, I'd like to wish you a somewhat belated birthday, but a Happy Birthday all the same!"  
  
"Thanks sir!"  
  
"Now, as for one of the main reason I'm here, is that I must discuss some very important issues with you. I want to address to you that you will be taught Occlumency yet again in your 6th year, and it will be with Snape, but, someone else will be there to make sure that the both of you aren't at each others' throats, or, invading one anothers' privacy."  
  
Harry glanced at the ground, he knew Dumbledore was speaking of last years' regretted look into Snape's worst memories.  
  
"But all that aside, I must enforce on you the importance of this. Harry, I know you and Professor Snape aren't the best of friends, but you must get past that. You've seen what the effect can have on you, from the happenings that took place in June. I apologize to bring that up, but I must have you do this. It's for your own good."  
  
"But why can't you do it, sir? Why does Snape have to be the one to teach me? He hates me with a passion, and never even told me how to occlude my mind to begin with! He didn't teach me, he just read my thoughts without me having any means of defense," cried Harry, angry that his headmaster was making him take extra lessons with his by-far least favorite teacher.  
  
"Professor Snape, Harry. But, you are still forgetting the other part of that arrangement. Someone will be supervising these lessons, because yes, I know that Severus can be a tad short-tempered."  
  
Ha...a tad, how about the temper of a hungry manticore, thought Harry.  
  
"Alright, sir. I guess I really have no choice, but, I understand that it's vital I do this, and not only for my sake," said Harry, pulling out of his gaze with Dumbledore, and his thoughts drifting back to Sirius.  
  
"Harry, I know you've heard this heaps of times, but, it wasn't your fault about what happened, nor was it your god-fathers," said Dumbledore, with a look of sincere sadness about the whole thing in his kindly eyes.  
  
"Well, Harry, I really must be off. Ever since Fudge has come to believe us, I've been called in night and day, during my teatime or in the middle of my sleeping hours. But, at least he believes us!"  
  
The elder man stepped out of the room, heading for the door to leave Grimmauld Place. He stuck his hand in his pocket to get out his wand, before going out into the harm of the outside world, he turned to Harry.  
  
"Oh, I'm really sorry! I almost forgot!" he apologized. Then he grabbed something that looked like a little bundle of envelopes from one of his pockets in his crushed velvet, purple robes. "It is yours, Mr. Weasley's, and Miss Granger's O.W.L . results. I'm sure you all are anxious to see your scores. Best of luck in your results, Harry! And there's also a little extra in your envelope, too! Have a good night!" And with nothing more than a blink and the sound of a crack!, the Professor was gone.  
  
Harry stared at the envelopes, too scared to even open them in public view of others. This was it, this would determine whether or not Harry had the chance of becoming an Auror after his Hogwarts years. He longed to just throw it in the flames of the raging fire in the sitting room, but passed it, and headed on upstairs. He went up to his floor, and instead of turning to go into his and Ron's room, which was now being used to discuss the Order's meeting topics, he went straight, down the hall, and into the room where Sirius used to escape to, where he escaped last year after Harry's court appearance.  
  
He slowly opened the door, wondering if he'd find a hippogriff by the name of Buckbeak waiting to greet him at the door, but when he opened it, there was nothing more than crumbs of old crushed bones on the floor and the slight smell of dead rats. He was disappointed to see no Buckbeack, but glad he wouldn't have to kneel and bow to him again, to avoid being pummeled by the creature. He sat in the corner, and muttered Lumos to see his envelope, his was on the bottom, and pushed Ron and Hermione's off to the side.  
  
And with a sigh, he slit the envelope flap to see it's contents. First was the usual letter sent by Professor McGonagall, telling him that the train would leave for Hogwarts at exactly 11am on September the first and some more information Harry had skipped over, along with another little envelope he set aside. Then, attached was a piece of parchment telling him all the new school books that were required for sixth year, not even bothering to see the books.  
  
Harry threw them both aside and opened the smaller envelope in which his results resided. And with another very deep sigh, and held his breath, he opened it and unfolded the parchment.  
  
Dear Mr. Harry Potter,  
  
We congratulate you on your wonderful achievements on the O.W.L. (Ordinary Wizarding Level) exam. We hope that you are most pleased with the results.  
  
Key: O "Outstanding", E "Exceeds Expectations", A "Acceptable"  
P "Poor", D "Dreadful", T "Troll"  
  
Charms- O  
  
Herbology- E Transfiguration- E  
  
Care of Magical Creatures- O  
  
Defense Against the Dark Arts- O, plus extra credit  
  
Astronomy- A  
  
Divination- P  
  
History of Magic- D  
  
Potions- O  
  
Harry stared at it. Nothing but numbness filled his body. He was going to be able to take the classes needed to become an Auror. How he did it, he hadn't the slightest clue, but he did, and that was all that mattered now. He, Harry, received four OWL's, one of which having extra credit added onto it. Of course, that was because of his conjuring a corporeal patronus. He was filled with glee. He didn't want to be in that stuffy room any longer. He dashed to the door, but just before leaving, he took one last glance at the sad, old room, and gently shut the door behind him.  
  
Harry dashed down the hall, still carrying his, and Ron and Hermione's results. He wrenched the door back, and saw five alarmed faces staring back at him. Trying to get it out, he gasped for breath.  
  
"What is it, Harry? Is there something wrong? Did the thing that Snape said, happen?" she questioned, her look of worry increasing with every word she said.  
  
"No! Nothing like that! It's only...we've received our O.W.L.'s! Dumbledore's just given them to me," said Harry, trying to sound casual.  
  
"Wonderful!" cried Hermione, dashing to Harry and grabbing the letter. She ripped at the envelope frantically and took an excited, but anxious look at the paper. She beamed around them and just admired the parchment.  
  
"Wicked!" said Ron, running to get his from Harry. But instead of quickly shredding the envelope, he just stared at it, as Harry had done in Buckbeak's old room.  
  
"I've got 9 OWL's! If only that horrible attack on poor Professor McGonagall wouldn't have happened, I'd have ten! But no, that horrible Umbridge woman ruined my chances of ten OWL's! And I'm stuck with one 'E'!" she yelled.  
  
"Hermione, calm yourself! I mean, come on, you've got nine OWL's and your still not satisfied! You were bound to screw up in at least one," said George, trying to calm Hermione of her hysterical state.  
  
Ron had finally opened the letter and looked at his results. He had a small smile across his face, increasing as he read.  
  
"I've received three OWL's! That's way more than I would've expected! Mum'll be pleased enough with this!" cried Ron, looking much happier than when Harry announced they'd received their letters.  
  
"So Harry, how did you do, mate?" asked Ron, finally getting over his surprising results.  
  
At first, Harry just looked around, not knowing how to exactly tell them. He glanced at the paper, and then back at the others, then one more glance at his paper, just making sure that these results were, in fact, Harry Potter's.  
  
"Spit it out already!" cried Ginny, waiting as anxiously as the others.  
  
"I've received four OWL's in all."  
  
"In what, I wonder?" added Hermione, obviously remembering that Harry really needed an 'O' in Potions.  
  
"Let's see," he said, running his fingers down the list. "Charms, Care of Magical Creatures, Defense Against the Dark Arts ('Well that's a given,' said Ron), and...let's see..."  
  
"AND?" shrieked Hermione, seeming to be taking this a little more apprehensive that he'd imagined.  
  
"And...POTIONS!" yelled Harry, no longer being able to contain his happiness, beamed at the rest of them.  
  
"Oh, Harry, that's absolutely wonderful! I'm so happy for you!" cried Hermione. And she ran up and gave him a hug that nearly knocked him over.  
  
Another hug was received by Ginny, as well and three friendly pats on the back and a "Congrats, mate!" from Ron, Fred, and George.  
  
Soon, the room was crowded, for Remus and Mr. and Mrs. Weasley entered the room.  
  
"Dear, dear, what in Merlin's name is all this shouting about?" asked Mrs. Weasley.  
  
"Really, we are trying to have a relaxing cup of tea downstairs, and were soon startled by shouts. May I ask the motive?" said Mr. Weasley.  
  
Remus eyed the papers Harry, Ron, and Hermione were holding and looked relieved.  
  
"Mum, we've only just got our OWL results back!" said Ron, very enthusiastically.  
  
"Oh, my, let's see them, come on now!" she ordered, taking Ron's paper immediately. "Oh, Ron! How wonderful! I'm so proud of you! Arthur, look, three OWL's!"  
  
"What about you, Hermione, how'd you do, dear?" questioned Mrs. Weasley, taking her paper as well.  
  
"Wow! Hermione, that's great! Nine OWL's! You're on your way to becoming a true mastermind witch, you know that?" complemented Mr. Weasley.  
  
Hermione said her "thank you's" and blushed and turned the color of beet red, which was also the color of Ron's ears.  
  
"So, Harry, how did you do?" asked Lupin, seeing that nobody had asked about Harry's results yet.  
  
Harry appreciated Lupin's thoughtfulness.  
  
"Well, I've received 4 OWL's!" answered Harry, unsure of whether he wanted the rest of them to know what his planned occupation was going to be post-Hogwarts.  
  
"In what? May I ask?" requested Remus. He seemed to know what occupation Harry wanted, and what he needed, even if Harry wasn't sure he knew. 'Dumbledore probably told him...' Harry thought.  
  
"Hmm...Charms, Care of Magical Creatures, Defense Against the Dark Arts, and Potions," said Harry, trying not to sound too enthused.  
  
Lupin grabbed the paper from him and stared down at it. "You got extra credit for Defense Against the Dark Arts?" he cried, seeming to be quite happy for him, but not all that surprised.  
  
"It's thanks to you, you know," Harry added.  
  
"How is that possible?"  
  
"The only reason for a bonus point was because I could conjure a corporeal patronus," said Harry, knowing that would make Lupin feel flattered, and Remus deserved that.  
  
"Why, it's not all me! You were the one powerful enough to master it. I'm really very proud of you Harry!"  
  
Harry blushed at being praised by someone other than his friends. Lupin was literally the only one left who was best friends with both his father and Sirius, and seemed to be somewhat shaping into something of a father- type figure to Harry.  
  
"You're mother and father, and Sirius, I might add, would also be very pleased with the results you received. And isn't that what you needed to get into NEWT potions? An 'O'? I'm glad, because now you really can pursue your career!" cried Lupin, obviously knowing about Harry's dream job.  
  
Harry smiled after hearing this, he now felt especially wonderful, after the huge complement from Remus. "Thanks Lupin! I didn't think you knew about what I wanted to be." And after seeing the curious looks on Mr. and Mrs. Weasley's faces, he decided he would tell them about his dream job. "Well, I know you both are wondering what my job is, and I'm sure it will drive you mad, not knowing, so I'll just tell you both here now."  
  
"Okay, dear," said Mrs. Weasley.  
  
"I want to become an Auror when I grow up, and I absolutely needed an 'O' to get into NEWT Potions, because Snape will only take the top scorers."  
  
"Wow, really, Harry? That's great!" said Mr. Weasley, looking politely shocked.  
  
"Now, it's a very dangerous job, dear, that's the career you really want?" asked Mrs. Weasley, who was now receiving a very denote look given by Mr. Weasley, which was saying, 'Why would you say something like that?'  
  
"Yes Mrs., Weasley, that's the job I want," said Harry, sounding awfully straight-forward, just the tone he was hoping , then!" said Mrs. Weasley, realizing that nothing would change Harry's mind and surprised at his tone, and Harry was grateful that she let it go. "Come on, all of you, downstairs for a sundae! This calls for celebration! Maybe we'll even have a little get- together tomorrow evening!"  
  
After having their snacks, which they all inhaled, since they really had no dinner. After seeing as it was almost midnight, the children were soon forced into going to bed. None really refused, as they were all a little sore from sitting on the hard floor for an hour and were really just exhausted from their night.  
  
Harry fell right to sleep that night. His magnificent, cheerful thoughts filling his head. He drifted off to a peaceful dream, about Hogwarts, and even his Auror fantasies. But soon after, it all disappeared, and a new image formed in his head. At the sight of it, his scar felt like it was on fire, and chills ran down his spine at the chilling voice that spoke. 


	8. A Nighttime Stroll

Apologies for the long wait! Lifeguard training took up quite a bit of my time!  
  
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Chapter 8 "A Nighttime Stroll"  
  
"Harry? Harry!" yelled Ron.  
  
Harry was jolted awake, just as he was when he left Privet Drive. He was irritated he was being shaken, but glad to be awake again all the same. He woke up with his sheets wrapped around him so he could barely move, and everything seemed to be wet with cold sweat.  
  
"What happened?" asked Harry, wondering if he really did all this from that nightmare, or was it a nightmare?  
  
"Mate, you were yelling and twisting about in your sheets as if you'd gone mad or something," said Ron shakily. "Was it another vision? Who was it? Is anyone in danger?"  
  
"Er..." said Harry, thinking back to the dream.  
  
It was located in the woods. It was nighttime, about the same time it had been when he'd fallen asleep, and Voldemort was speaking with someone. He and a woman were staying there, to hide...and the woman's voice was very familiar to him, though he couldn't see her face because her back was turned from his view. They were discussing something...something about a surprise attack somewhere. Where? He couldn't be certain. The harder he thought, the quicker his memory of it washed away. He was straining hard now, trying to endure every last thing he remembered. They were planning an attack somewhere near or in London. Where again? He still couldn't be sure. Then, the last thing he remembered was the woman turning with an evil sneer upon her face, as though Christmas was coming and she just couldn't wait. It was Bellatrix. Why he hadn't thought of it earlier was beyond him, who else could it be? Bellatrix was his most loyal servant now...now that she's done...his murder.  
  
"Well?" asked Ron, waiting for an answer.  
  
"It was Voldemort, and Bellatrix was with him. They were planning a surprise attack somewhere...around London. He seemed awfully happy about the chat," said Harry, still surprising himself with his ability to sense his moods so effortlessly.  
  
"C'mon, lets go get someone, we can tell Lupin right now," said Ron, who'd flinched at the sound of Voldemort's name, just as he had done on so many countless occasions.  
  
"I dunno, I mean, it might've just been a dream," added Harry, feeling guilty for not every trying to work on his Occlumency, because if he had, that vision wouldn't even of happened. He didn't want it to happen. He knew what Voldemort was capable of doing with his mind now, and he wasn't about to ask for those dreams any longer, not after what happened to Sirius.  
  
"Harry, we're going, this sounds like a vision to me."  
  
"Fine," said Harry, realizing that he'd been defeated. So Ron helped him out of his twisted covers, and steered him out of the room.  
  
They noiselessly scurried out of their bedroom, and down the hall. They figured Lupin might still be up, maybe having a late night cup of some freshly brewed coffee. The two hurried into the kitchen to find all the lights out but the fireplace. Someone was sitting in a chair, only his or her shadow letting Harry know of the persons presence. Harry and Ron crept up slowly, and then Harry finally decided to speak, careful not to startle whomever it was, just in case it really was Remus.  
  
"Lupin? Is that you?" he asked in a loud whisper.  
  
The person neither flinched, jumped, nor turned to see who was talking. Still unturned in his or her seat, the person spoke in a scorned undertone, which, no matter how quiet, made Harry and Ron jump two feet off the ground.  
  
"Well, what are you two wandering about in such hours of the night, but it's not like it's a first, Mr. Potter," he said very calmly.  
  
What in the world was he doing here? At the sound of 'Mr. Potter,' Harry and Ron gave one another taken aback glances. Since when was he ever in Grimmauld Place after the meetings, sitting in front of the fire, and of all things, having a cup of coffee.  
  
"You! What are you, doing here?" cried Harry.  
  
"I, am here on Dumbledore's orders, Potter, and nothing more," still unturned in his chair.  
  
"Then why may I ask, Snape, why you are relaxing in my house, by my fireplace, with my coffee?" added Harry, trying to sound as horrible as possible.  
  
Ron, stunned at Harry's rudeness, just stood and watched as the two men decked it out.  
  
"My, my, my, you are still quite the childish brat."  
  
"Why are you here on Dumbledore's orders?" asked Harry, getting straight down to his main question.  
  
"Well, since Lupin isn't here at the moment, I was sent here to watch the place till morning. Unless you two dull-headed idiots weren't intelligent enough to realize that there's a full moon tonight," he sneered, still with his back unturned.  
  
Harry was about to retort back, but had nothing to say, as he did forget that tonight was the full moon, so he just stood there, dumbstruck.  
  
"What did you want him for anyway? To look and see if there was a little lethifold under your bed?" he sneered, but obviously curious, because he finally turned in his chair so that Harry could see that pale, sallow face's gray eyes staring at him.  
  
Harry thought hard on what to say. What did he do? He couldn't let Snape know that he wasn't practicing, let alone even thinking about Occlumency or occluding his mind in the least bit, before Dumbledore ever mentioned it.  
  
"I...er...I mean...we just wanted to...ask him some things that were going on in the Order," he replied, looking over to the wall right above Snape's left shoulder. He now knew not the look him directly in the eye, unless he favored Snape detecting his quick-thought lies. Or could he do it without looking into people's eyes? Was Snape that powerful at Legillimency?  
  
"Oh, come on you foolish boy, it's obvious you've had a vision," he sneered, a smirk going along with the insult. "Why else would Weasley have come, rather than to make you," he added, shifting his icy stare to Ron, now. He fidgeted as this happened, and tore from his gaze as well. "And look at you, you're covered in your nauseating sweat. I was right, I knew you wouldn't have the brains to block out the Dark Lord, even after what happened to that god-forsaken godfather of yours."  
  
Harry was glaring at his Potions professor, jaw set and fists clenched so tight that the nail indents from earlier were far worse than when overhearing the meeting. 'How dare you,' thought Harry, ' and after you even egged him on to do something like that. You have no place whatsoever to speak ill of him, even after that Pensieve session.' He was no longer looking at the floor, but his stare was attempting to burn into Snape's, hoping that he heard every bit of what Harry had said.  
  
And luckily, from the look on the dreadful man's face, he read every single bit of it, and the last part seemed the most insulting to Snape. He was now glaring at Harry with such hatred, such a loathing, that his stare really did seem to be burning into Harry.  
  
Ron now had a look of confusion upon his face, as he took notice of Snape's facial expressions change in an instant, not understanding that Harry had insulted him from inside his own head.  
  
"How dare you! You insufferable little twit, you will never speak in that way to me ever again, or I'll be taking more than house-points once you're back at Hogwarts," Snape warned, his voice dangerously severe.  
  
"Well then how about you never ever insulting Sirius in that way ever again!" retorted Harry.  
  
There was nothing left to say, and just before he was about to leave, he'd realized he had openly let Snape read his mind, meaning that he most definitely saw his vision. Angry with his stupid move, he and Ron headed back to bed. They were on their floor when, in the pitch dark, Harry slammed into something solid.  
  
"Ouch!" he cried, along with a swear word or two. He pulled out his wand, which he left in his pocket at all times, and was now in habit of doing so, even in Grimmauld Place.  
  
"Damnit!" cried the solid figure in pain.  
  
"Who's there?" asked Ron, talking thickly into the blackness.  
  
"Who do you think it is?"  
  
"Do you really think we'd know, seeing as it's the middle of the night, and completely dark and all," yelled Ron, directing his voice towards the person.  
  
"It's Fred, you Flobberworm!" he cried, still rubbing his now bruised rib and whispering a Lumos to show them all in clear light.  
  
"Why in Merlin's name are you wandering around at night like this?" shouted Ron, still trying to keep his voice somewhat to a dull roar.  
  
"Well, me and George heard Harry, here, yelling, and then you two dashing down to the main floor, so I decided to come check it out. You, know, since last year when he had a dream about dad. George would've come, be he had to stay up there in case mum came wandering in, just to check on us," replied Fred, somewhat annoyed with the last part about his mum.  
  
"So you came to eavesdrop on us, were you?" asked Ron, somewhat offended.  
  
"Of course little bro!"  
  
"Oh, c'mon, who really cares," said Harry, finally speaking for the first time. "Did you hear anything downstairs then?"  
  
"Nope, I was just going down when you two came back. George and I had to choose between each other on who would come down, but since I had the privilege, now I'm stuck testing our latest idea, Supreme Slugs," said Fred, his tone hinting a bit of glumness.  
  
"Supreme Slugs?" questioned Harry, the title sounding fairly explanatory.  
  
"Yes, and we are thankful that Ron's little spell in 2nd year, you know, the one that backfired on Malfoy about slugs. Well, they are little candies that look like your innocent little gummy worms, but looks can be deceiving." added Fred with a smirk, now his voice becoming overpowered with amusement.  
  
"That's nice, Fred, using my unfortunate spell as an invention," said Ron, trying to cover up his amusement.  
  
"Oh, get over it, ickle Ronnie-kins, it was a superior little hex, and we've come up with a way for these Supreme Slugs to slide down your throat, but after doing so, they crawl back up, but multiply, depending on the color of them! I'm just warning you, to look out for the purple ones, those are by-far the nastiest," said Fred.  
  
"That's great! But when are you doing all this, being here and not at the joke shop for the summer, being off and all?" asked Harry, who really was quite curious.  
  
"You don't really think we go to bed that early do you?" said Fred schemingly.  
  
Harry just smirked and Ron started to steer himself, and Harry back to their room.  
  
"C'mon, Harry, lets go."  
  
"Wait! What happened downstairs? I heard Harry and someone else yelling down there, and I didn't need the Extendable Ears to hear it, either," said Fred, wanting a reasonable answer from them.  
  
"Well, Lupin's not here, since it's full moon and all," said Harry, feeling a twinge of guilt for not remembering. "So Dumbledore's sent someone else to stay up and stand guard."  
  
"Who? Was Tonks or Mad-Eye down there? Why would you yell at them?"  
  
"Nope, I wish it would've been them though."  
  
"C'mon Harry, who?"  
  
"It was Snape," admitted Ron, with a pure look of disgust upon his freckly face.  
  
"I did, in fact, have a vision, and we were going to inform Lupin about it, but we ended up finding Snape instead. Then he went on to insult Sirius...and that's probably when you heard shouting," added Harry.  
  
"Wow, and he had the nerve to insult him? In his own old house?" cried Fred, "stupid, slimy, filthy scum, git of a Professor and Order member!"  
  
"Well, that's the old git for you," said Ron, his disgusted face deepening while attaining a slight red tint to his ears.  
  
In the seconds they were silent, the three heard someone headed down the hall, their footsteps hurrying closer and closer.  
  
"Who's there? Fred, George...are you two sneaking around again?" whispered Mrs. Weasley, her tone very harsh, but groggy.  
  
"Goodnight you two!" said Fred, and with a turn, and a quick little pop! he was gone.  
  
Harry and Ron ran down the hall, and since their room was in the direction of Mrs. Weasley, they did the only thing they could do, run the other way and stay out of sight till she went back to her own room.  
  
Still searching frantically for a place to hide, they finally came across a room, which was thankfully unlocked, or, seemed to actually spring open as they ran towards it, and hurried in, quietly clicking the door closed behind them.  
  
Ron muttered Lumos under his breath to give them a clear view of the room they'd come across. Both turned around and gasped as they took in all the features of the odd room.  
  
"Why have we never come across this before?" Harry said, wondering aloud.  
  
"I don't ever remember seeing this room here before," said Ron, his voice filled with amazement.  
  
With a glance at each other and a nod, they decided to explore the room. Ron tried to make this the best conclusion because—  
  
"Well, we are hiding from mum till she goes back, we might as well occupy ourselves while we wait! And what better than in this wicked room!"  
  
The room was amazing. It had hundreds upon hundreds of defense books, along with hexes, curses, jinxes, and Dark Arts material. There were many different kinds of small gadgets spread throughout the room, some of them looking similar to the ones that Harry, himself, had smashed in Dumbledore's office, only a mere two months ago.  
  
Ron searched throughout the books, looking for something good, and Harry decided to interest himself with the different Dark gadgets in the room. He took note of a few silver ones upon a small shelf, and a note on the shelf saying, Spy Objects. The shelves were dusty, and seemed to look like even Kreature, who already did a deprived job at cleaning, seemed to have been avoiding this room for possibly the entire time he ever lived to serve the Blacks'.  
  
He was looking deeply into a geometrical shaped one, when Ron called him over to a book he had pulled down from a shelf.  
  
"Harry! Look at this!" Ron cried, admiring the book greatly.  
  
"What is it?"  
  
"It's called Hexes, Jinxes, and Curses: A Guide to Your Most Complex, But Useful Spells. We could definitely take a look at this sometime! There are some excellent ones in here that would put Malfoy and those thugs of his right!" said Ron, his face filled with glee, as though he could have all the Honeyduke's candy he wanted—for free.  
  
"That's great! I'm sure some of those could definitely fit nicely with the Acne hex!" said Harry, who was already scanning the room, trying to find something else to look at.  
  
He had almost scanned around the entire room, when his gaze fell upon a small corner, which had a few pictures hanging in it's small little space.  
  
He walked away from Ron, who was in mid-sentence, reading a jinx off to Harry.  
  
"Yeah, cool," Harry added thickly, walking towards the corner. Ron just shrugged and read on.  
  
The corner was also dusty, but even more so than the rest of the unkept room. The pictures were inside golden frames, and looked very expensive.  
  
Inside one, was a man with long dark hair tied back, who's color and length looked identical to Sirius', and had the same structure to his face. He also had a black mustache, which curled up at the ends. He looked very well groomed. He didn't smile, or even move, he just blinked up at Harry in a menacing way.  
  
In another picture, there was three young girls, who looked like extremely young versions of Bellatrix Lestrange, Narcissa Malfoy, and another girl who must've been a young version of Sirius' favorite cousin, Andromeda. They all smiled up from the frame, their eyes young and innocent, full of love and innocence, and nothing more. They smiled and waved happily at Harry.  
  
And in the last one, was a man who looked somewhat like Sirius, who had the same face structure as him too, but the hair was a light shade of brown, and was even longer and rattier than Sirius' had even been. Harry assumed that this man must be Regulus, his god-father's younger brother, who was a Death Eater. And right next to him, was Sirius himself, who looked very forlorn in the picture and didn't wave, but merely stared at Harry, Sirius' revulsion toward his family showing through in the picture with his brother. Although, looking angry, Sirius looked completely different, his face was young and full of color. His eyes were completely bright, and not sunken in in the slightest bit. He was very good-looking, even for such a young age, and looked like he had a good physique, he was still quite skinny, but not nearly as much so as when he'd escaped from Azkaban.  
  
At that moment, Harry had realized why he had hated this house so much. He knew before, but never had a complete understanding of it. This house probably flooded back memories to him, all, Harry was sure, miserable and probably quite painful. He felt so horrible at the thought of him being stuck here, in this infinite reminder of all of them. He didn't feel pity, because he knew that Sirius would be upset at the thought of his godson taking pity on him. He felt understanding, and with that, he motioned to Ron, who reluctantly set down his book, and they headed out the door.  
  
The next morning Harry woke up early, not getting much sleep last night, even after his return to bed. As soon as he closed his eyes, the picture of Sirius' gloomy, miserable face staring up at him. He realized they lived somewhat of a similar childhood. Stuck with the worst people in the world, who treated him horribly and unproven. They both hated the places they were each stuck in, locked in, like prison, like Azkaban. Harry felt such a rush of gratitude for him, for being able to cope with his prison, Grimmauld Place. And before actually drifting off into a very troubled sleep, a tear ran down his cheek; he was now truly missing his godfather more than ever before. 


	9. Eavesdropping

My apologies yet again, for the long wait in between chapters! I hate to say it, but it will probably be that long, if not a little longer in between waits, because I'm becoming very busy this month.  
  
Also, thank you to Hakkai - Gojyo - Goku – Sanzo and Rosemary the Rubix Cube for your reviews. Rosemary, I really appreciate the tips you are giving me! Punctuation has never been my best subject, but I am trying harder! I have no beta, so I just read over it a few times, so my apologies for errors. I also always thought that O.W.L.s were only the "Outstanding" grade you got. My mistake. (  
  
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Chapter 9 "Eavesdropping"  
  
The next few days were spent outside, because with the welcome of August among them, it was absolutely perfect conditions for Quidditch practice. Even with his latest sadness upon finding an old sibling picture of Sirius and Regulus, Harry couldn't pass this up.  
  
His moods increased amazingly. All he had to do was walk to their hidden- from-view field, even equipped with three goals on either side of the pitch, and Harry would become filled with the excitement and exhilaration that only Quidditch could bring him.  
  
Ron's skills had improved tremendously. He was getting to be just as good as his winning-obsessed, old Captain, Oliver Wood. The goal keeping he'd done to help Gryffindor win the Quidditch Cup had given him a new outlook. Ginny, who was Seeker last year, after Harry's awful banishment from the game by Umbridge, was a superb Chaser. She definitely knew what she was talking about when she'd told him that she was a better Chaser. Sneaking into the broom closet as a child and flying was definitely showing its results on the pitch. Hermione, on the other hand, was more of the crowd, rather than an actual player. She sat on the sidelines and kept score, cheering them all on. The twins, however, were still just as good, if not better, flyers than when they were Beaters for their house.  
  
Today, since there was five of them playing, Ron goal-kept for both teams, trying his best to block out the Quaffle from everyone. And since there was no need for a seeker, or Beaters, for that matter, Harry and Fred were on a team, versus, Ginny and George. Half the time was spent just throwing the Quaffle around and showing each other different tactics and maneuvers to improve their game. But once they had a real game going, it lasted most of the day, even Hermione got tired of it and decided to go in for some lunch, but never returned. It was tied for most of the game, one block after the other, one score after the other. When the sun decided it was time to set, the score was 60-60, Ginny in possession of the Quaffle.  
  
"Ooh! We WIN!" Ginny cried, stealthily making it past Ron's maneuvers and scoring for her side.  
  
"Bloody hell, I'm beat," yelled Ron, trying to make himself heard over Ginny and George's whoops.  
  
"Me too, I'm starved. Pity Hermione didn't bring anything back," said Harry, laughing as George taunted Fred over losing to his little sister, while Harry was rubbing his grumbling stomach.  
  
"Shut-up George, or else I won't be the only one testing Supreme Slugs, except you'll be asleep..." retorted Fred, giving his twin a can't- wait-till-you-fall-asleep glare.  
  
They headed for the dirt. Complete twilight washing over them as they landed onto the firm, grassy ground. Harry swung his beloved Firebolt over his shoulder, the rest following the suit. They were just about to leave the pitch completely, when something caught Harry's eye and he stopped abruptly, staring in the darkness into the direction the movement came from.  
  
He removed himself from the group and walked towards the woods. It was pitch black, with only the crescent moon and a few scattered, twinkling stars for a source of light. He plunged his hand into his pocket and held out his wand.  
  
"Harry?" whispered Ginny in a worried voice, and from the sounds of it, they were all close behind him, tiptoeing noiselessly.  
  
Harry held up his hand to quiet them. He headed further, the trees only about a foot away. The bush made another sudden movement, and Harry saw a pair of gleaming eyes, and could've sworn he heard paws or feet, he couldn't tell which, quietly running off into the distance.  
  
He pulled back the branches, only to find Crookshanks purring loudly at the sight of them. Harry took a deep breath, somewhat relieved, but he had a feeling that there was something else there as well, other than Hemione's part-cat, part-kneazle pet.  
  
"Oh, it's just you Crookshanks," sighed Ginny, picking up the cat, it's bottlebrush tail swishing back and forth as she held it.  
  
"C'mon, lets go," said Ron, "it's a little creepy out here."  
  
"Yeah, just a tad," said George.  
  
So they all headed back towards Grimmauld Place, the only sound they heard after encountering Crookshanks was his purring and their feet crunching against the dirt. Not one of them dared looking to the side while heading back to the quarters, only staring forward, focusing on the door.  
  
As Harry walked into the house, he was greeted with the delicious smell of dinner drifting throughout the first floor. Starving, he headed for the kitchen, where they all sat down and waited for Mrs. Weasley's cooking. Hermione came in soon after, looking clean and hair its normal amount of frizziness. She looked nothing like the rest, Harry especially; whose untidy jet-black hair was a disaster area. It looked as if he'd just walked out of hurricane winds, into the calm wind-free dwelling.  
  
"Where were you today?" asked Ron.  
  
"Well, your little game got really boring, so I came back in to do some reading and talk with Remus."  
  
With that, Harry looked around and saw Lupin sitting in the kitchen, his foot propped up against another chair, reading the Evening Prophet. He looked worn out and had purple colored bags under his eyes, but looked happily in Harry's direction, giving him a grin, and then looking back to the paper.  
  
Harry sat down next to Ron and Tonks, who was also joining them for dinner this evening. Today, she had her short, bright, bubblegum color hair and a violet shirt, which had the words, Weird Sisters, glowing on the front.  
  
For dinner, Mrs. Weasley cooked up some chicken potpie with flaky bread, boiled potatoes spiced with herbs and drenched in butter, warm butter rolls, and some homemade ice cream. By the time dinner was over, there wasn't much food to clean up after. Everyone scarfed it all at the speed of light. Harry and the others especially, since none of them had any lunch for the day. After finishing the last of his homemade ice cream, Harry was fit to bursting, his pants felt way snugger than when he'd put them on this morning.  
  
Thankfully, no one had asked him about his vision at dinner. Harry figured that Snape must've informed Dumbledore, because no questions were asked of him yet.  
  
"Alright, why don't you all go into the sitting room, you've been outside all day, I think you all should just give it a rest for the rest of the evening," said Mrs. Weasley, still a little upset for no one coming in to eat the lunches she prepared for them.  
  
Harry, Ron, and Hermione went off into their own little corner, while the twins and Ginny decided to have a game of Gobstones. Once they were out of earshot, they each settled down into squashy chairs.  
  
Harry, with some help from Ron, told Hermione about his vision of the wooded area, their visit with Snape, and the newly discovered room the two of them had come across. Hermione's first response was that they should've just gone back to their rooms instead of hiding from Mrs. Weasley.  
  
"What if you would've gotten into trouble? Or saw something that you shouldn't have. That door must've been locked for good reason," Hermione said, upon first hearing of the mystery room.  
  
"So, back to our discussion. Why do you think it was locked? I mean, there was some pretty wicked stuff in there," asked Ron.  
  
"Well, Lupin, or your mum and dad, Ron, probably didn't want anyone to see it. Maybe because of all the gadgets in there. Or the books in there could be inappropriate or something. They are probably used for detecting Dark Arts or people from V-Voldemort's crowd," replied Hermione, who was trying particularly hard to start saying Voldemort's name, mainly for Harry's sake.  
  
"There were a lot of weird things in there. I even came across a shelf with objects used for spying," said Harry, appreciating Hermione's effort. Meanwhile, Ron, as expected, flinched, but hadn't said a word.  
  
"Although I do wish I could've had a look at some of those books you found, Ron, they sound really interesting," complained Hermione.  
  
"Maybe you can..." said Ron.  
  
"You don't mean..." whispered Harry.  
  
"No, Ron, we couldn't, we really shouldn't. What if we get caught?" said Hermione, her words sounding very rule abiding.  
  
"Not if we don't get Harry's cloak out! No one would ever give it a thought! Unless Mad-Eye's prowling around at one o'clock in the morning," said Ron, a hint of excitement in his voice.  
  
Harry wasn't quite sure what to say to make Ron change his mind. He hadn't told either of them about the pictures he'd found of Sirius and his family. After finding them in the room, he had no real desire to ever be in that strange room again. It would just bring back the thoughts that crossed his mind the last time he went there. And he certainly didn't want Ron and Hermione seeing them. It would just bring the topic of discussing Sirius to the surface again, and Harry really didn't want that, not just yet, anyway.  
  
"What? You think it's a bad plan?" questioned Ron, seeing the frown upon Harry's face, sounding a little letdown.  
  
"What? Oh, no. It's good...I guess. I was only just thinking about that room, that's all. Just wondering why it's there," lied Harry, only just realizing that he must've had a frown on his face, from thinking.  
  
Hermione gave him a doubtful look, probably figuring that wasn't at all what Harry was thinking.  
  
"Well then, when do we do it? How about tonight? I really want to finishing looking at those jinxes and curses!" said Ron, finally breaking the uncertain silence.  
  
"I don't know Ron, I don't think going in that room is a smart thing to do..." said Hermione, her reply was hesitant.  
  
"C'mon, Harry! Don't you want to go have a look in that room again?" cried Ron, his look pleading for someone to take his side.  
  
"Well...I...er...all right—"said Harry, still unsure of himself and the trip to the room.  
  
"Great!" said Ron, cutting Harry off in mid-sentence. Harry could read from just his face that he was full of excitement and anxiousness.  
  
So after going up to their sleeping quarters, they fell asleep. And when it felt like Harry had just closed his eyes, he was being wakened by Ron's eager attempt to rouse him. It looked as though Ron hadn't slept at all, but stayed awake till it was time to go down to the mysterious room.  
  
Harry shoved the heels of his hands into his eyes, little stars forming in his vision. His attempt to wake himself was useless, so he sat up and grabbed blindly for his cloak at the bottom of his trunk. He felt its silver, swishy material and pulled it out.  
  
Ron stood by the door, waiting. They pulled the cloak over themselves. It was hard to believe that once, he, Ron, and Hermione had all fit comfortably inside the cloak. Now, it was even a challenge for just the two of them. Ron was very tall, but Harry wasn't far behind, so they both had to hunch over in order to remain hidden inside the cloak.  
  
They headed down to the floor below them, heading very slowly, to Hermione's and Ginny's room. Hermione was right inside the entrance when Harry quietly opened the door. Her eyes had a reproachful look to them, and still seemed unsure about the whole plan.  
  
It was almost impossible that they could make it to the room, concealed under the cloak. Very slowly, but surely, they reached the place where the room door should be.  
  
"Where is it?" whispered Ron, a slight irritation in his voice from hunching over for so long.  
  
"I don't know, are you sure it was here?" asked Hermione, sounding annoyed herself.  
  
"Yes! Of course I'm sure! Right past that picture of some old hag. It was right here, I swear! Wasn't it here, Harry? Remember?" whispered Ron, his voice louder because of Hermione's doubts.  
  
"Er...yeah, I think so," said Harry. He was not all that upset that they hadn't found the mystery room.  
  
"Oh, well, Ron. Maybe it's better. Now we can just get back to our rooms and no one gets in trouble," said Hermione, sounding a little reliever herself.  
  
They all headed back down to Hermione's room to drop her off. Harry and Hermione were content on heading back their rooms for some sleep, but when Ron finally decided to give up, walked huffily beside Harry.  
  
This was somewhat uncomfortable for Harry, mainly because he was sandwiched in the middle, and Hermione was sticking as close as possible, terrified of being seen, and Ron was just sulking.  
  
They were on their way down the stairs to the floor below, when they heard someone talking in a nearby room.  
  
"....don't know, these attacks could be serious," said the voice.  
  
At the sound of attacks, the three friends nodded at each other, and headed for the doorway. They didn't go in, but stood where the door let the crackling fire's brightness shine through the crack.  
  
Luckily, the two people were talking at just the right volume to be overheard even outside the room.  
  
Harry knew that one of them must be a man's voice, it was lower and he sounded serious, whatever they were discussing.  
  
"....Remus, you must keep watch. With Lucius back in with the crowd again, Voldemort has everyone in his inner circle. Severus has informed me of no meetings yet, but I still think there's some danger in leaving the house for anything just yet," said the man, who Harry instantly recognized as Dumbledore.  
  
"Okay, Albus. I'll try my best, I don't think Harry's going to like this idea. Well, I know he won't like this idea," said Lupin.  
  
"I understand. I'm sure he'll be quite upset when he finds out he can no longer go and practice Quidditch, but once he knows why, Remus, maybe he'll understand," said Dumbledore.  
  
"Okay, sir, I'll tell him tomorrow morning," said Lupin. He sounded very tired and a little restless.  
  
"Well, sorry I can talk longer, but I really must be going. I shall be meeting with Fudge at the Ministry for a little meeting. Good night Remus," said Dumbledore. And seconds later, Harry heard the familiar sound of floo powder in the fireplace and a quiet muttering of "Ministry of Magic."  
  
The only person left in the room now was Lupin. He seemed to be bustling around, possibly tidying up or putting on pajamas to turn in for the night.  
  
Harry assumed that this was his room. Knowing that even though he shouldn't, he did it anyway. Harry turned the corner to take a quick peek at yet another room he'd never seen before. It was quite small, the bed was still made from this morning, and everything had a place to be put. His clothes were neatly folded on a bedside chair, where his shoes were also laying. The fire was still crackling merrily, which gave the room a warm glow to it. Lupin also had books scattered throughout the room. All of them, from Harry's view, were mainly Defense books. Harry figured that when Lupin was the Defense teacher in his third year, he'd bought books on it too.  
  
Then, Harry came across a few pictures that Lupin had on his nightstand. There were three in all, just like in the mystery room. All of which had familiar people in them, who Harry had known at one point or another.  
  
The first one Harry looked at was a school picture. Harry figured it was taken at Hogwarts, because they all had robes on that had the Gryffindor lion crest on embossed on it. From left to right, it showed Remus, James, Sirius, and—to Harry's disgust—Peter. They looked like they were about Harry's age, maybe a little older. They looked like they were having the times of their lives, the way they were laughing in the frame.  
  
Another one had the same picture that Mad-Eye Moody showed Harry just last year. Harry looked away from this one quickly, because the picture still caused him to feel a little sadness for the unaware people in it.  
  
The last one Harry looked at had himself in it. His tiny self looked so small that Harry assumed that he had to have been just born not long ago, or no later than six months. His dad and mum were in it. His dad's pinky finger was being gripped by Harry's little hand and squeezed tightly. On the right side of his dad was his mother, who was smiling happily upon Harry. Then, on the left side of his father was Lupin who was holding Harry, and looked happy, but looked that he was holding him very firmly, terrified of dropping little baby Harry. Beside Remus was Sirius. He was smiling up towards the camera, his pinky finger also being held by Harry.  
  
Harry smiled at the picture, realizing that when Hagrid sent out for pictures for Harry's photo album, Lupin must've sent a copy of it. Harry thought back of that day and tried to imagine it in his head. But soon he was brought back down to earth by Hermione's urgent whispers.  
  
"Harry! Oh, c'mon, Harry!" she whispered, trying to persuade him to move. But before he could react, Ron was steering him away, and down the hall.  
  
By the time Harry and Ron reached their sleeping quarters, Harry was beat. He fell down onto his feathery, fluffy, and very warm bed, and set his head onto his equally soft pillow. He hadn't even had time to take off his glasses before he drifted off to sleep.  
  
-------------  
  
"Mmm...that looks delicious Mrs. Weasley!" said Hermione, licking her lips hungrily.  
  
"Lets go mum! My stomach sounds like it might explode from all the grumbling!" complained Fred, rubbing his exceptionally loud belly.  
  
"Patience, Fred, patience!" cried Mrs. Weasley, setting the numerous plates of breakfast onto the table, along with an ice-cold jug of pumpkin juice.  
  
Harry dug in quickly, before the food was reduced to crumbs. Most didn't talk today, but sat and enjoyed the friendly silence as they ate in peace.  
  
Afterwards, everyone left the kitchen, but, as Harry predicted, Lupin held him back. Mrs. Weasley didn't leave this time, but stayed behind to possibly back Lupin up.  
  
"Harry, a word?" asked Lupin.  
  
"Okay...sure," said Harry, trying to sound curious.  
  
Harry sat back down next to Lupin, who folded his paper up neatly and laid it on the wooden table.  
  
"Well...I'll just get right down to it. You see—er—since you are in danger, hiding from Voldemort and all, we all think it's a bit...unwise for you to be wandering outside. You could be being watched," said Lupin, trying, with some difficulty, to partially sugarcoat what he was saying.  
  
"Yes, dear. It's the safest thing for you to do," Mrs. Weasley chimed in.  
  
"Yes, and since you aren't permitted, to be leaving the house before absolutely necessary, I'm afraid you won't be able to have any more Quidditch games out in the field. We have reason to believe that there could possibly be people easily watching you from the woods," added Lupin.  
  
"It's for the best dear, and for the others as well. So they won't be going out for practices either, so you won't be missing anything really," said Mrs. Weasley.  
  
Harry thought this was crazy-talk. Quidditch was the thing that kept him sane in this house. He hadn't given it much thought last night, but it was now sinking in. No Quidditch? No leaving this horrible house until 'absolutely necessary'? This was going to be difficult. But then the night he discovered Crookshanks in the bushes and that mysterious running in the distance popped into his mind.  
  
"And...I'm afraid there's more. Since you aren't allowed to leave Grimmauld Place..."  
  
Harry already knew what was coming, it was obvious.  
  
"...you can't go to Diagon Alley either. But you and the others will have their things. Mrs. Weasley will be going into London today to get everyone's things."  
  
"I'm sorry, you can't do anything dear, but it's for the best! Also, if you don't mind, could you tell the others that I'll be going into Diagon Alley today, and that they give me their lists of school supplies?" asked Mrs. Weasley. She sounded polite, but Harry knew this was more of an order rather than a simple question.  
  
"Sure, Mrs. Weasley."  
  
"Thank you dear, and if you could, do it now, so I'll be ready when I'm done tidying up?"  
  
Harry left the room, depressed that he couldn't leave this place, but figured, it wasn't the end of the world, he'll be able to fly again once Quidditch season starts at Hogwarts.  
  
Then something hit him. Would he be able to play Quidditch once he was back at Hogwarts? Surely with Umbridge gone, his lifetime ban had be lifted. He thought about it no more, because he didn't want to wallow in the fact that he couldn't play Quidditch.  
  
He walked in and told the rest to give Mrs. Weasley their school lists, and anything else they needed.  
  
"Well, I think well be going in too. I'd like to stop in on Lee and see how things are going with the shop and the new workers," said Fred, and got up and followed George out of the sitting room.  
  
Harry ran up to the second floor and pulled his list out of his trunk. Soon, all the Hogwarts-bound children were shoving their papers in Mrs. Weasley's direction, leaving her a little irritated.  
  
"Alright, children! Ginny, would you just wait? Ron, just write down the potions you need restored! Don't worry, Hermione, I promise to get all your books, along with the extras you put down!" cried Mrs. Weasley.  
  
Harry stood in the corner laughing as Mrs. Weasley listened to the orders of the others. His was already in the stack of the lists, so he left the room to sit by the very comfortable and welcoming fire across the hall.  
  
Ron and Hermione came in soon after. Hermione still had the whole letter intact. She plopped herself down of the rug, where Crookshanks was laying. His ginger colored fur looking like an extremely small and odd fur rug.  
  
"Look at this! You know, in all the excitement of the O.W.L.s, I forgot to read the rest of this," said Hermione, her voice trailing off as she started to read the papers.  
  
"Who cares? When do we ever read those. All they ever say is that, as usual, we'll be leaving the Hogwarts Express on September 1st at 11:00 am," said Ron. He was now sitting in a chair across from Harry grabbing his Chocolate Frog card collection folder from a nearby table.  
  
"It's different this time. Yeah, there's the usual letter, Ron, but there's another paper behind it!" said Hermione matter-of-factly.  
  
"Really? Read it," asked Harry, becoming a little curious.  
  
Ron seemed not to care, because he was still flipping through his folder looking at cards, but his head was cocked slightly and was flicking the pages too quickly to be reading them.  
  
"It says here," Hermione read, "that there will be extra precautions taken at Platform nine and three quarters. Aurors and other Ministry workers will be outside the train entrance, and inside. I guess they're taking this danger thing really serious! Well, that's always good, I guess. At least no one will be able to wander off at all or even—"  
  
"Oh, blimey, would you just get on with it Hermione?" yelled Ron, his face no longer staring at the collection of cards.  
  
"Fine...fine," she snapped. "Anyways, they will also be on the train on our way to Hogwarts. And they'll be inspecting the train periodically just to check on things."  
  
"Is that it?" asked Harry, somewhat unsatisfied with information given. "It sounds like their leaving things out. I wonder what will happen once we get to the school? Do you think they'll even be like Umbridge and check in on lessons?"  
  
"Nah...I don't think anyone would follow that old hag's rules," said Ron, punching his fist in his hands out of revulsion for the lady.  
  
"You know, speaking of teachers and Umbridge, I wonder who will be the Defense teacher this year? You'd think they'd be a little more cautious, especially after that Mad-Eye Moody imposter," wondered Hermione aloud.  
  
"Yeah, you'd think. Maybe they'll just give it to an Auror or something..." Ron said.  
  
"Probably," said Harry. "I hope its Tonks...she'd be fun."  
  
"Yeah, but she's part of the Order, Dumbledore needs her on guard," added Hermione, shooting down Harry's idea.  
  
Soon, Ginny joined them, and she gave them her two cents about who the teacher should be, and some nasty and quite snide remarks about Umbridge.  
  
The four spent the day inside, as enforced, making fun of Umbridge, who in the world the next teacher would be, and what crazy ideas the new Defense teacher will spring upon them in their next year at Hogwarts. 


	10. The Hogwarts Express

Chapter 10

"Hello, dears!" yelled Mrs. Weasley from the foyer.

Harry and the others followed her into the kitchen to collect their school supplies. It took a while to separate all the books, potions, and extra things from each other.

Soon enough, Harry had sorted through all the items and found his own. Mrs. Weasley also gave him a fair amount of spending money to last him throughout his sixth year, and pocketed it quickly after seeing the insignificant amount given to Ron and Ginny.

He and Ron carried their stuff up to their rooms to put into their trunks. Harry glanced at his books, and the one on top happened to be called _Defending Your Life: The Finest Curses, Hexes, and Jinxes to Use Against the Dark Arts_. Harry took a quick look over the contents, and was surprised to see that it had many of the curses he had taught the D.A. last year.

"Hey Ron, did you look at your Defense book yet?" said Harry.

"No...why? Blimey! Would you look at that! I think we might actually have a good teacher this year!" said Ron.

"Yeah, well, maybe Fudge has finally wised up about Voldemort," said Harry grimly.

"I doubt it. Stupid git. I bet you anything that Dumbledore had something to do with it. Dad told me Fudge has been depending a lot on Dumbledore lately. Now that he's back being Chief of Wizengamot and everything else he's involved in, I'm sure some Ministry workers are back on his side."

"Shows how capable Fudge is, doesn't it?" said Harry, his dislike for the man never really diminishing after his argument with him after the Tri-Wizard Tournament.

They would've kept talking, but Mrs. Weasley was calling them down to the kitchen for dinner.

"Where's the twins, mum?" asked Ron, entering the kitchen. Harry followed close behind.

"Oh, they stayed to help their friend Lee with a few things down at their shop," answered Mrs. Weasley, sounding a little impatient.

Harry figured that she still didn't approve of Fred and George running their own joke shop. He hoped that no one had bothered to tell her that it was he, Harry, who gave them the money to start it in the first place.

The last few weeks flew by very quickly, as Harry knew too well that they would. Anytime your having fun, the time goes on fast-forward. Before he knew it, it was the last night he would be spending at old Number 12, Grimmauld Place.

Mrs. Weasley cooked up a magnificent feast for them all that night. Lupin was also back at the house again. Since there was so much food to go around, even Tonks, Mad-Eye, Bill, Charlie, and Mr. Weasley joined them. The twins even made a poster saying, "Good Luck at Hogwarts!" and when Mrs. Weasley wasn't looking, either of the twins would change it to say, "Make Malfoy Pay!" and showed a miniature Malfoy as a slug, with red and splotchy pimples everywhere.

Hermione, of course, made her usual tutting sound. It was used only too often when she disapproved of something. But everyone else laughed at the sight of it, including Mad-Eye, whose magical eye was rolling about in its socket with every chuckle he made.

"I wish I could've claimed the stunt my imposter did on Lucius' son. Turning him into a ferret and all. It would've been very enjoyable," he said, and everyone around him laughed. Mad-Eye was lucky enough that Mrs. Weasley was too busy talking with Mr. Weasley to notice his remark.

The feast was delicious. Harry had a little bit of everything. There was steak, which was tender and cooked to perfection. And potatoes of every kind, including scalloped, boiled, mashed, and spiced; all of them were covered in butter. There was also chicken, both crispy and rotisserie style. Honey ham, which had a slight sweet taste to it from the honey coating. There was also boat full of rich gravy for toppings. For dessert, there was homemade strawberry ice cream, Yorkshire pudding, and chocolate éclairs.

After Harry had finished, he was about ready to explode from the many extra helpings he'd taken. He just couldn't resist. Neither could anyone else. Luckily, there was nothing left to eat, because the table of them had cleaned every bowl, plate, and pan filled with food. Even the boats of gravy were nothing more than empty china with a drop or two of gravy at the bottoms.

After watching Tonks helping Mrs. Weasley, which was very entertaining because no matter how much she helped she always knocked something over, they all waddled slowly into the sitting room, where they each collapsed upon a sofa.

Soon after, the Weasleys (excluding Mrs. Weasley), Harry, Hermione, Remus and Tonks had a game of Exploding Snap. Mad-Eye sat and talked with Mrs. Weasley, presumably about tomorrow's plans. After about their sixth game, Mrs. Weasley had let out a yip when she checked her watch.

"Children! Go to bed! It's past mid-night, and tomorrow we are to be at the station early. Go, now! I don't care George, just go!" She cried, ignoring everyone's protests.

Harry and the others slumped off towards their rooms. Harry was actually glad that Mrs. Weasley has ushered them off to bed. He was really tired from all that food, and if he had played another game of Exploding Snap, he was sure he'd fall asleep and knock over the cards himself.

Neither Harry nor Ron said a word once in their room. Both just dropped onto their beds, without even changing. As soon as Ron hit the pillow, his breathing became heavy and turned into soft, raspy snores. Harry sat and thought about Hogwarts and drifted off to a highly rare, calm sleep.

It felt as though Harry had just fallen asleep when he was being wakened by Mrs. Weasley's yelling.

"Children! Get up! It's nine in the morning! We have to be at the station by ten thirty! GET MOVING!" she shrieked.

"Merlin, she sounds quite cheerful, d—d—doesn't she?" said a very groggy Ron, unable to hold back his yawn.

Harry leaped out of bed and hurried around the room and _Accio-_ing everyone that was scattered in his room. He threw it all into his trunk. He put on his trainers and headed downstairs with his trunk, and Hedwig, who was back in her newly clean cage. Ron was following close behind, Pig hooting cheerfully in his cage.

"Just drop them at the bottom of the steps! You two need to eat before you go!" said Mrs. Weasley, sounding extremely rushed. She set down some toast, marmalade, and pumpkin juice for them. Ginny and Hermione were already down there, and each was spreading marmalade on their toast slices. Fred and George even came down, because they wanted to go with them to see them off to the train. All of them ate in sleepy silence as they consumed their toast and drank their juice.

Within minutes, Mr. Weasley, Tonks, Mad-Eye, and the eldest Weasley boys were there. They had gotten cars from the Ministry again. Harry suspected that Dumbledore had probably ordered Fudge to let Mr. Weasley take them. Harry smiled when he imagined Fudge's harassed look upon his face. They were all carefully taken outside. Harry was the first to get to the car. Tonks was in front of him and Mad-Eye at his side. His magical eye was swiveling around in every direction, checking for the slightest suspicions.

There were two Ministry cars. Harry assumed that they'd be enchanted; because there was no way they would all fit in two muggle cars. Tonks, Harry, Mad-Eye, Charlie, Lupin and Ron in one car, and the others were in the second car.

There was a lot of traffic on the roads, causing them to be a part of morning rush hour. They seemed to move barely inches every few minutes or so. Mad-Eye seemed to be going mad from all the careless drivers. His eye was again rolling aimlessly in his head from his anger. Harry grinned. Mad-Eye somehow reminded him of Uncle Vernon from all his shouting, but he wasn't nearly as puce as Uncle Vernon would get. But he did turn a shade that would even have made Uncle Vernon proud.

Ron, Harry, and Charlie, who were in the back seat, spent their time discussing Quidditch teams and this year's house team.

"C'mon, Charlie, you know this is their year! The Chudley Canons are gonna make a comeback, and you'll be sorry once they beat the Tornadoes!" argued Ron, who was still very loyal to his extremely dreadful Quidditch team.

"Ron, I'm telling you, after last year, the Tornadoes have shown real potential. They're bound to make it to play-offs! The Canons will be lucky if they win one game!" retorted Charlie.

Harry sat and watched as their argument went on for the rest of their trip. It was 10:50 once they reached King's Cross. They all ran pell-mell towards platforms nine and ten, and didn't stop till they reached the barrier. All of them went in pairs, running headlong towards the wall. Once all were inside Platform nine and three-quarters, the train had smoke billowing from the front of it.

Harry was amazed at how many Aurors were there. They were all very alert, and their eyes darted throughout the station quickly. Harry even spotted Kingsley Shacklebolt, but remembered from last years' trip to the Ministry to make no notice of him. Mr. and Mrs. Weasley hurried them over to the train.

"Goodbye, dears! Have wonderful year!" cried Mrs. Weasley. She was hurriedly kissing them all on the cheeks and she said her goodbyes.

"Don't cause too much trouble," said George with a wink, as he gave Ginny a one-armed hug.

"Yeah, but don't be afraid to cause a little excitement. Things are bound to get a little boring this year," added Fred.

"I'm sorry to cut this farewell short, but it's 10:58! Get on, all of you!" yelled Tonks, grabbing some trunks and carrying them on board.

Once on the train, Tonks and Lupin dropped their things onto the floor.

"Okay, all of you, no discussing things anywhere someone can hear you, even if it's just some nobody. And no sending owls. We're not taking any chances; owls aren't a reliable enough way to send post. Just go to Dumbledore if you need to send us anything important," said Lupin, sounding very rushed.

"Yeah, what he said," remarked Tonks, breaking into a smirk.

Just as they were heading towards a compartment of their own, and Ron and Hermione towards their Prefect meeting, Lupin held Harry back.

"Harry, once you're at school, please watch out for yourself. You know, and I know that Draco Malfoy is going to be spying for his father, so watch out. And, you remember when Sirius gave you that mirror last year? Yes, I know about it," he said when he saw Harry's look of surprise. "I've found the other, so we'll be able to talk, whenever you feel the need to do so. Just say my name, and we'll be able to communicate. Just make sure we're out of earshot."

Harry nodded. The train blew the whistle, warning that the train was about to leave any second. Lupin dashed to the train's entrance door but stopped, his hand on the knob, and turned.

"Oh, and Harry, have wonderful year. I hope to see you soon!" replied Lupin with a wink, and slammed the door behind him.

Just as the door had snapped shut, the train had jerked forward, launching Harry to the carpeted ground. He pushed himself up using the only remaining bag in the corridor for leverage. Just as he looked up, he was staring right into the eyes of Cho Chang.

"Oh...hi," said Harry, without a trace of a smile, or any emotion for that matter. He glared back at her blankly.

"Er...hi, Harry," she said, blushing furiously. Cho's hair was as sleek, smooth, and shiny as ever. It was the same length and the same black shade of color. She looked very tan from summer break, looking as though she spent the entire time baking in the sun.

They looked at each other for a moment, then Cho blurted out, "I'm sorry about your godfather."

Harry stared at her with widened eyes. He was very shocked that she knew about Sirius' death. He gave her a questioning look and then finally muttered out, "How do you know about that?"

"Well, actually, I heard it from your friends, Ron and Hermione," she said, saying Hermione's name with the smallest note of jealousy. "We had a really short meeting just now and they told me to leave you alone and not to bother you. And they said you had enough to be dealing with, with your godfather's death and all. But they wouldn't tell me who or anything."

"Oh...uh...yeah...thanks," said Harry, his voice just short of a whisper.

"Well, I guess I'll be going. I'm really sorry about your godfather, you know," she repeated. Cho was now walking down the opposite end of the corridor, and then disappeared inside a compartment.

Harry stared down the hall for a couple moments, just shocked that he actually had a civilized conversation with his old crush Cho.

"Harry?" asked a voice from down the hall.

Harry turned around to see Ron's head sticking out the cubicle his friends were all in. Harry headed toward the door dragging his bag behind him. He stowed it up into the storage area and sat down in the seat nearest to the window.

"Where were you? I figured you'd be back before us," asked Hermione.

"Oh, I...er" Harry wasn't exactly sure if he wanted to announce his meeting with Cho to Ron, Hermione, Ginny, and Neville.

"Were you talking with Cho, mate? I saw her walking down the other end of the train before I called your name," said Ron, his voice full of amusement and detest at the same time.

"Well, if you must know, yeah," he said, and with Ron's question, reminded him of why Cho was talking to him in the first place. "For some reason, she seemed to know about Sirius. You two wouldn't know anything about it, would you?" asked Harry, glaring at them both.

Ron pointed towards Hermione.

"Well, Harry, we knew she was still upset about you, and we didn't want her torturing you with annoying huffs to you in the hall and petty rumors," said Hermione slowly, seeming to weigh every word before speaking them.

"What'd she say anyway?" asked Ron, stopping Harry from snapping back at her.

"Well, she just said she was sorry about my godfather, that's all," he said, still glaring slightly at them both.

"Oh, okay, well then, there's no more need to discuss it. We don't need to waste our time back to Hogwarts talking about Cho Chang," said Hermione, a hint of distaste in her voice.

They spent their time discussing what they'd be doing during their next year at Hogwarts, and soon, Harry, Ron and Ginny were discussing their house team plans. After a while, Hermione yanked out a book from her bag and slouched back into her chair as she opened the book to page one. Neville, not too Quidditch savvy, decided to care for his 2 foot long Mimbulus Mimbletonia plant. It seemed to act more like a small animal than just an ordinary old plant. It crooned when it was stroked, and when Neville fed it small worms and slugs, it chewed them visibly with its sharp tiny teeth.

"Anything off the trolley, dears?" asked the plump witch, interrupting Ron's idea for a diversionary tactic.

After buying sweets, they all settled back down into their seats again.

Ron ripped open his chocolate frog and stuffed the croaking reptile into his mouth.

"All right! I finally got Uric the Oddball!" yelled Ron, his voice very muffled over his half-chewed chocolate frog.

Hermione stared at him with a harassed look upon her face. But she turned to look out the window when a flash of lightning lit up the orange and pink dusk sky.

"I hope it's not too bad, I'd like to get to the carriages in one piece," she said.

"Don't worry Granger, I'm sure Scarface and Weasel will look out for you," drawled a cold voice from the entrance to the corridor.

Draco Malfoy, sandwiched between Crabbe and Goyle, glared back at them all. Harry hadn't noticed their entrance, since he was still staring out the window, looking at the stormy sky. But he was now staring at Malfoy with the utmost loathing. The lightning was giving Malfoy a very menacing look upon his face.

"Malfoy, why don't you leave, before we're kind enough to make you all the handsome slugs you were at the end of last year," said Harry coolly.

"We'll get you back for that Potter. Thanks for reminding me to do so. We'll be watching you, so you best watch your step, Potter," threatened Malfoy, an evil smirk spreading across his pointed face.

And as if rehearsed, at the last sentence, Crabbe and Goyle stretched out their hairy gorilla arms and made fists with them.

"Oooh, I'm scared now, Malfoy. I guess with your scumbag father out of prison again, you're just some big tough guy now?"

Malfoy smirked at Harry. "Oh, think you're funny do you? You just wait, Potter, you'll be sorry you ever sent my dad to prison, even if he already escaped the Ministry's clutches with ease."

"Big deal, you really think he did that? He just followed the orders of his and your boss. No great task if you ask me. Even your....lets say, brainless scum of a father, could've managed it," replied Harry, with a look of satisfaction upon his face.

Malfoy's sneer slid from his face and now had a look of pure hatred upon it. "You best watch your mouth Potter, of else you'll be on the receiving end of Unforgivables this time."

How Malfoy knew about Harry trying to cast the Cruaciatus Curse upon Bellatrix Lestrange was beyond him, but he didn't let it show in his face.

"Oh, I'm scared now. Are you sure that these two stupid gits are capable of something like that, Malfoy?" asked Harry, feeling so much triumph just from Malfoy's face that he was smirking broadly.

"Insult all you want, but if you remember, it IS thanks to us that your poor old godfather of yours is gone forever and ever! Does poor wittle Harry miss his stupid dead godfather?" said Malfoy in a dangerous whisper. He had adapted a baby voice so similar to Bellatrix's it was uncanny.

And before Malfoy could insult Sirius any further, Harry had his wand out, including Ron and Ginny. Hermione and Neville were trying to persuade the other two to sit back down. No one dared argue with Harry. It happened in mere seconds. Before Malfoy could even reach for his wand, Harry struck. He hit him with a jinx so intense and powerful that Malfoy had flown back into the hall and slammed into the corridor door across from Harry's. The glass where Malfoy hit shattered all over him and the floor and Malfoy slid down slowly and unconsciously towards the ground. A trickle of blood ran from underneath his white-blonde hair. Crabbe and Goyle stared fearfully into Harry's eyes, which were now blazing with anger and hate so extreme and strong that his green eyes seemed to flicker. As if snapped back to life, the two thugs ran over to their ringleader to carry him back to their corridor. Harry twirled back around to face the others. They were all looking at him with such amazement and shock that it looked as though they had just spotted Voldemort in person.

Harry, his breath ragged, slid the door shut and slammed himself into his seat by the window, and the others, as though forced to do everything he did, followed the suit. Ron was the first to break the uneasy and angered silence.

"Wow. That was some hex of yours" said Ron, his voice full of admiration.

"Yeah, Harry, you should teach us that in the DA this year!" said Neville with an uneasy laugh.

"Harry, that was" was all Ginny could get out, she obviously couldn't think what she thought about that.

Harry just stared at them all for a couple moments. He was still breathing heavily, as though he just finished a mile.

"Er...thanks," he said, reddening in the face slightly.

Hermione stared unblinkingly at him from her seat. She seemed to be the only one to see that curse for what it was. Even Harry didn't quite understand why his spell had worked so well.

"What jinx was that, anyways? I didn't hear what curse you said," asked Ron, still sounding in awe over what happened to Malfoy.

Harry knew it was a simple curse, but before he could explain it, or even how to explain it, Hermione answered Ron's question.

"It was a simple Impediment jinx," she whispered.

"No way, Hermione! It must be something from one of those books he got from Lupin or something a while back. There's no way the Impediment jinx does THAT much damage!" cried Ron.

"Oh, it's possible. You just need to be powerful enough to conjure it like that....very powerful. And you have to mean itâ€really, really mean harm on it's victim," said Hermione, still staring at Harry.

Harry was starting to feel uncomfortable now. He didn't like being talked about like that, let alone right in front of him.

"Hermione, you really think it was just an Impediment curse? You're wrong!" said Ron, clearly thinking that he was right for once.

"No, Ron, it was the Impediment curse. That was the first thing that came to mind. Actually, it was that pimple curse, but I guess I really wanted to HURT him" said Harry, speaking at last. Everyone turned in his direction to see what he had to say.

"Oh, well, blimey, Harry! That was some curse of yours!"

"Thanks....I..er....I guess I really did mean it. I mean, he asked for it!" stuttered Harry.

"You're right Harry! The nerve of him insulting Sirius like that, right in front of you!" said Ron, making a fist and punching it into his other hand.

"But, why was he starting to speak in that baby voice? What was the point of that, anyways?" asked Ginny, clearly confused.

There was some thoughtful silence among the rest, although Harry knew the answer almost immediately. He never told them that she'd spoken like that to him or casted Crucio upon her.

"You know after Sirius....er...well, after that happened, I chased after Bellatrix myself. Remember, Neville? Well, once we were up in the Atrium, she started taunting me about how I felt about Sirius and his fall through the veil thing. Well, she started using that voice for it, the one Malfoy was using just now. After, the same thing happened and I got this—er—anger towards her. I casted the Cruaciatus Curse upon her. But it didn't do more than cause her a little pain and make her scream once. He probably heard about it from her, I'm guessing."

"Harry...I don't—why didn't you tell us or—_you cast an Unforgivable_?" stuttered Hermione, sounding as though she needed to get it all out quickly.

"Well, Hermione, she deserved it didn't she? Taunting Harry like that! And then Malfoy doing the same! The nerve of that slimeball! I wish you wouldn't have of held me and Ginny back, we could've done some more damage!" yelled Ron, now throwing reproachful glances towards Hermione and Neville.

"But that's the last thing we need right now! We can't just go off injuring one of Voldemort's right-hand men's sons! That is not going to help us in the least!" shrieked Hermione.

"But Hermione, he had no right to say anything like that. He came up to us, we didn't go looking for him! It's his own damn fault, if you ask me!" cried Ginny, sounding nothing short of pure hatred.

They took a moment to stare at Ginny's use of words. She seemed more upset than she had let on earlier.

"Well, it's done and over with now. We might as well get back to our Pumpkin Pasties, then," added Harry, trying to get things back to normal.

"But, Harry, it's NOT done and over with. What do you think Malfoy's going to do once he gets back up to the school? He's going to go straight to Snape and report you! And you know what else, he's going to send word back to home too, to try to cause you more trouble at the Ministry! When has he ever taken anything you've done to him lightly? And especially on the way to Hogwarts. He's not going to go letting this stay unnoticed, you know!" said Hermione, her voice becoming overpowered with worry and anguish.

"You know what, Hermione? The thing is, I don't care. Malfoy can do what he wants. I don't take back what I did. I did it for a reason, and he asked for it, so he got it. He deserved what he got," said Harry calmly.

Hermione made a few huffing noises and looked as if she was ready to fight back, but one look from Ron, Ginny, and Neville hushed her immediately.

"You don't think he deserved what he got then? Do you? You think he can just go off insulting Sirius like that?" said Harry, his anger started to bubble to the surface again.

"No! Harry, I didn't mean it like that! I just meant.....well, I was just looking at the consequences, that's all. I'm just not so sure that this is just going to smooth over quickly, that's all," pleaded Hermione, desperate to not get into a conflict with Harry.

From everything that happened on the train, no one took notice of the fact they were almost at Hogwarts. Soon, there was an announcement made from the conductor that they would be arriving in five minutes time.

Without another word for the remainder of time till they arrived at Hogwarts, the five dressed in silence. Only when the train came to a complete halt did Ron finally break the quiet between the five. Ron clapped Harry on the shoulder as they were stepping down off the train and into Hogsmeade Station.

"Welcome home, mate," said Ron, and then he clapped Harry on the shoulder as they were stepping down off the train and into Hogsmeade Station towards Hogwarts.


End file.
